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Many little Next Actions make a Big One

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The last couple of weeks have been extremely hectic and have given me ample time to really update my GTD principles. But step by step I am getting more organized again. But my Next Action list just keeps growing. The biggest issue I am facing right now is how to divide my time between little jobs that have to be done (a phonecall, email, letter) and balancing my time in actually not doing all these little things because my big project I am working on gets less attention. It’s the Long Tail thought in some way is it not? If I do everything right now that takes less than two minutes, it will take me 2 hours to do it. But! In these two hours, urgent email rushes in, phones ring because a server went down, my co-workers need to be updated on the project, have questions and oh yeah, I have an appointment waiting. And I don;t get the things done for the Big Project I know, this is the classic case where GTD can be of help. But really, what is the signal, the red flag that tells you to stop doing these little things and get on with it? Even though these little are equally important? How do you handle with it? I find the book very vague about this. PS: I can’t tell you or show you anything on The Big Project, since it is for a client. But I will let you know as soon as I can in public

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  1. I think your text says it all: “the Big Project”.
    Your issue is that you need to take that big project and get the next physical action. If that next action is something that doesn’t fit into an executable period of time due to the interrupt level of your day, then you need to do one of two things:
    1. Isolate
    2. Breakdown
    If you cannot cut yourself off from the interruptions, then you need to put that next action into progressive chunks. For example, “30 Minutes of brainstorming Big Project.”
    The reality is that 99% of the time, your Big Project starts with some very small, executable next actions like the phone calls, email, etc., at the end of the day it is the stuff that takes some concentrated time that tends to get you. For me that means doing it in a truly isolated area with pen and paper. If I need to be on the computer, then I unplug (physically) from the network and phone and close the door, set the kitchen timer and get to work.