The Eisenhower Matrix

What do you do when you are overwhelmed by tasks?  Do you have a sound and optimized decision making strategy?

Something that helps a lot of people make decisions is using former US Presidents Dwight D Eisenhower’s guidelines called the Eisenhower matrix.

The matrix divides each decision into two categories. How urgent it is, and how important it is. Based on those two factors, you have a better structure for how to attack it. If something is both urgent and important, do it now. If it is urgent and unimportant, delegate it to someone else. If it is not urgent but important, schedule to do it another time, and last, if it is neither urgent nor important, eliminate it. With this framework, you will have more success moving between tasks and making final decisions, allowing you to be more productive with your time and work with more conviction.  

First, familiarize yourself with these four different options, or make a poster and keep it on your wall. Then, as problems arise, write them on a sticky note and figure out where on the matrix they belong. You’ll soon realize the right way to proceed has been decided for you.