SESSION 2 SUMMARY · 4 hours
Sort it Out #2: Building a system you actually trust.
Organize items you acknowledged and noted, set meaningful priorities across all levels of your life, and establish the re-check point — the habit that holds the whole framework together.
STEP 3 – ORGANIZE
Everything in its place.
Organizing means placing things where they belong — not just anywhere, but in a place you’ll actually look at. The goal is to build a framework that feels reliable enough that you stop mentally double-checking it.
Managing complex systems with too simple tools makes those systems more complex.
— CYBERNETIC PRINCIPLE
There are two flavors of organization in “Sorting It Out”. The first is your calendar: time-specific commitments go there, and when the reminder fires, you act — no postponing. The second is your what’s-next list: actions you’re committed to but that don’t belong to a specific time.
Your what’s-next list can — and should — be filtered by context, time available, and energy level. This is what allows you to pick the right task for the right moment without thinking.
TAGS
Utilize filtering tags
Use context or time tags to mark tasks. Those tags will serve as filters later on … click to read further
You will use them to pull the task relevant for the context you find yourself in.
GOALS
Define clear goals
Use the past tense to define the outcome of your goals/projects … click to read further
“Report finalized,” “Holiday booked.” Clear objective is important.
Next actions start with a verb: “Email Maria the re proposal,” “Book a dentist appoitment.” Clear naming prevents the friction of re-reading and re-deciding.
STARTING prcess
Figure out how to start
Often we feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of tasks we are faced with, don’t panic, there is a method … click to read further
If you don’t know how to start, brainstorm with yourself what you know about the topic and not everything down. Then, group your thoughts into THEMES. Pick ONE of the themes and starts with it.
finding time
Find time for doing
You need to start with collecting your thoughts before any improvement can appear … click to read further
You need to pause, stop what you are doing and literally breath in and out (slowly). You cannot solve an issue while being in the same state of mind that created the issue. You need to detach yourself from it, and you can ONLY do it by taking a break.
STEP 4 · RE-CHECK — ATTENTION ALTITUDES
Five altitudes. One coherent set of priorities.
“Sort it out” suggests thinking about your commitments at six levels simultaneously. Higher elevation defines and filter lower ones. Knowing your purpose makes it easier to say no to things that don’t serve it.
30,000 FT
Extreme Altitude
What do you want to achieve in life? What is the reason behind everything else? Reviewing this once a year is often enough — though life changes faster these days.
20,000 FT
Very Hight Altitude
Where do you want to be in three to five years? How does your vision manifest your purpose?
10,000 FT
High Altitude
What do you want to accomplish in the next year to facilitate your vision? Review quarterly.
7,000 FT
Moderate Altitude
What are the ongoing areas of your life and work you need to maintain? These don’t have end dates — they’re the domains you’re responsible for.
SEA LEVEL
Low Altitude
What do you need to finish? Any multi-step commitment with a defined outcome. Review weekly.
How much do we really “see”?
ONLY ~50 signals (0,00045%), out of 11 million received by our brain each second reaches our conscious awareness!
99,9995% of information is filtered out by our brain and is treated as a “noise”.
This is called the “narrow broadcasting channel”: what you placed your attention on decides what goes through this channel, so be selective on what it is.
STEP 5 – ENGAGE
Pick your work consciously.
Having a trusted system means you’ve already made most of your decisions in advance. Now it’s just a matter of choosing what to engage with, and doing it with full attention.
Chose the next action based on 4 criteria
Pick your next action based on the value it brings, the context you’re in, your available energy, and the time you have. When these four align, execution becomes natural.
Understand the nature of work
Your day contains three types of work: executing pre-defined tasks (your main work), handling work as it arrives (ad-hoc requests), and defining work (processing inboxes, clarifying). The third type takes about one hour per day for a typical professional.
Batch similar actions together
It takes an average of 23 minutes to fully regain focus after an interruption. Batching reduces context-switching: respond to all emails in one pass, make all calls together, rather than switching between types of work constantly.
Eat the live frog first
If your most important task is also the most uncomfortable, do it first — when energy and willpower are highest. Deferring it depletes your day psychologically even before you start.
What to remember
KEY TAKE AWAYES FROM SESSION 2
Your brain is nTrust comes from completeness, not sophistication. A simple system you review regularly beats a complex one you avoid.
Organize is not “file it.” Organizing means putting things where they belong, so they surface at the right time without you having to remember them.
Every project needs at least one next action. A project without a next action is just a wish. A stalled project list is a sign of skipped clarification.
Horizons give decisions their meaning. When you know your purpose and vision, the question “should I do this?” often answers itself.
The Weekly Review is non-negotiable. Falling off the wagon happens to everyone. The discipline is simply getting back on. Book it as a recurring calendar event.
NEXT TRAINING SESSION
Want to contiue your learning journey? Open the third session of the training by clicking the link below:
