Manage your Attention, not your Time

or, my new organizational strategy.

I admire people who are strong enough to stick to one project till it is finished. It is different in my little world of consciousness. I must try each idea that comes across my mind RIGHT NOW! This is how I do accumulate the projects that are screaming at me due to me missing a color and waiting for it to arrive, giving attention, and spending more time on a new design, or being busy with real life issues. 

Due to some personal reasons, I took time off to regain the energy for my obsession with Petit Point and other needlework. It is a fact that I have a lot of projects have been started and have not been finished. Particularly there are about 20 framed projects that need my attention. They include Petit Point, Cross Stitch, Goldwork. I have put a lot of thoughts into organizing all stitching projects giving a priority to the most important. I have searched on Google different ideas other stitchers are sharing on how to catch up with all UFO’s and concluded that none of them are working for me to reach my goal.

The expression “Manage your attention, not your time” makes more sense for me. Know your priorities, right?

I put on the list 16 prioritized designs that need my urgent attention and must be finished within a year. You can see them all below

Four of them, marked in red, are the ones that I am planning to work daily on, excluding the weekends.

Another four in green are smaller works and I am thinking about devoting an hour to each daily.

Those on the list in blue color are on a “waiting list” and each of them will be merged to the list above in green as soon as any project on the green list will be finished.

It means that each week this ladder will be changed with finished projects moving out of the list. I am exceptionally good at planning than at following the plan. However, at the end of the month, I will gladly report about how productive I will be and if this system works for me.

Happy new creative week to you!

Natalia