How to Clear a Backlog - The 4 Rs Method

Описание: We all get behind from time to time. This creates a backlog of stuff you need to do. It may be a pile of papers you have to read, or bills to pay, or forms to fill. Perhaps it’s an email inbox full of unanswered (or unread) emails. Or it might be a list of jobs around the house.

To avoid the stress of it playing on your mind, you need to know how to clear a backlog.

Watching this video is worth 2 Management Courses CPD Points*.
(See below for more details)

This video is part of course module number 1.6.2
Program 1: Managing Yourself
Course 6: Personal Productivity
Section 2: Time Management

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LESSON NOTES
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Backlogs bring us down. They sap your energy. We look at them and feel guilt, obligation, duty. Then you start to feel overwhelmed, so you move on. You ignore your backlog, so it keeps growing.

Before you know it, it's not a pile: it’s a mountain. And you're a ‘bad person’ for letting it get that way.

Four-Step Process for Clearing Your Backlog
1. Remove
Put your backlog somewhere it won’t grab your attention and make you feel bad. Put your pile of papers in a file and put that on a shelf. Create an email folder called Backlog and drop everything from your inbox into it. Take your list of household jobs off the counter and put it in a drawer.

2. Review
What if there's something in the backlog you removed that's important and urgent? Look through it for anything you should put back into your frontlog. This will stop you from misplacing something and missing a deadline.

3. Reinvent
Focus on your frontlog.
But how did the backlog arise?
A peak in workload?
Don’t worry. You’ll clear it in the next trough, and all will be well.
Struggling to cope with your workload?
Reinvent the way you handle your work. Find a way to be more productive or reduce your workload through: delegation, saying NO, or negotiating more sustainable standards.

Once you are on top of your current workload, you can:
4. Reduce
Carve out a regular small chunk of time – daily or weekly. In that time, deal with one or two items from the top of your backlog.
Options:
• Drop
• Diminish
• Delegate
• Defer
• Do

RECOMMENDED EXERCISE
======================
Follow the Backlog routine for your backlog:
1. Remove (1 MC CPD Point)
2. Review (2 MC CPD Points)
3. Reinvent (3 MC CPD Points)
4. Reduce (2 MC CPD Points)

DOWNLOADS
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CPD Tools - https://gum.co/MC-CPD
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Management Courses Onboarding Kit - https://gum.co/MC-ObK ($3)

RECOMMENDED READING
=====================
I'll be as modest as I can. I'm something of an expert on effective working, personal productivity, & time management, with 4 best-selling books by 3 international publishers:
The Time Management Pocketbook
... https://geni.us/gHa4
How to Manage Your Time
... https://geni.us/Cpvp
Powerhouse: Turbo Boost Your Effectiveness and Start Making a Serious Impact
... https://geni.us/H7GDizc
The Yes/No Book: How to do less... and achieve more
... https://geni.us/yhF90n

And here are my picks from the thousands of other books on personal productivity, effective working, & time management:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
... https://geni.us/Zulp
The Power of Habit: Why we Do what we Do, and How to Change
... https://geni.us/vNtXd4
Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
... https://geni.us/JxTY
Eat that Frog! 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating
... https://geni.us/48Y1LlC

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===========================================================
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