Your to-do list doesn’t have to dominate your day. Each time a new task pops up, you can quickly prioritize it simply by estimating how long the task will take.

“There’s nothing so satisfying as watching a stack of work decrease as quickly as you handle it,” says business coach Wayne Pepper. Here’s his three-step method for whipping through your day’s duties:

Step 1: Time The Task

As new duties arise, ask yourself if it can be finished in two minutes. If the answer is “No,” set that duty aside. However, if you can complete the task in two minutes or less, go ahead and complete it.

Benefit: Your to-do list will quickly dwindle as you cross off the items that can be finished in a short time period. Seeing your list shorten will provide a productivity boost that keeps your mind focused on getting more done.

Step 2: Weed Out Wasteful Efforts

By evaluating the duties on your to-do list, you give yourself the chance to eliminate tasks that won’t make you or your customers more productive.

Next step: Make a pile for tasks that aren’t crucial but that need to be done, such as setting up a new organizational method for your files or researching a new technology that you won’t be able to purchase for a few months. This helps you make the most of your time and focus on what you need to accomplish.

Step 3: Prioritize Your Projects

Now that you’ve finished your two-minute tasks and eliminated the irrelevant items on your list, you can prioritize your short-term and long-term projects.

Try it this way: Note the potential cash value of each project and the resources you’ll need to complete it. Then list how each item will benefit your customers and your company.

Now that you can measure the financial importance of each item, determine which ones you’ll focus on first and which can wait.

Filed under: Customer Service Corner