Creating a to-do list can be a useful tool for organizing your day by defining what you need to accomplish. However, when you do those tasks is critical, because it can impact how well you complete them, says Donna McGeorge, author of The 1 Day Refund: Take Back Time, Spend it Wisely.
“Pay attention to the clock in your body, not just the one on the wall,” she says. “Human beings have circadian rhythms. We were designed for mental alertness in the morning and physical dexterity in the afternoon. That’s just how the body clock works.”
Instead of randomly tackling to-dos, McGeorge breaks up the day into four quadrants, each lasting about two hours. And each quadrant can be an ideal time to tackling different types of work.
The first quadrant
The first two hours of the day are for high intensity, high-impact work. These tasks are the most important things you are paid to do, and they require the most brainpower.
“As knowledge workers, that’s when our genius is turned on,” says McGeorge. “That’s the best time to do things that require a lot of mental intensity.”
This could be the time to write proposals or create new business strategies. This is not the time to be in your inbox. If you’re spending the first two hours of your morning on email, you’re wasting the best part of the day,” says McGeorge.
“I know that sounds counterintuitive to a lot of people, but 90% of your email doesn’t need a lot of smarts,” she says. “Most of us use up all that valuable time in the morning doing email. Then in the afternoon, when we’re tired, we’re suffering from decision fatigue. We make bad decisions because we’re tired.”
It can be challenging to change your default habits, like checking email first thing in the morning. McGeorge suggests glancing at your inbox to make sure there isn’t an emergency that requires dropping everything. Then, later in the day, go back to your email to handle them.
“Scan for what’s come in, but resist the urge to respond until later in the day,” says McGeorge. “Then you’re only making one or two decisions. It’s a fallacy to say, ‘If I just get that out of the way, then I’ll be able to do great work and concentrate.’”
The second quadrant
The next two hours of the day should be dedicated to high intensity, low-impact work. “That doesn’t mean that it’s not important work; it just may not be as impactful to you as it might be impactful to others,” says McGeorge.
This is the time to have one-on-one and team meetings around projects where you still need your smarts. Or, if an employee or colleague needs advice or input on a situation, late morning is a good time to schedule this conversation.
The third quadrant
Use the two hours after lunch for low-impact and low-intensity tasks. These are things that you don’t think of as important but still have to be done, such as filing, reviewing reports, and processing your email.
“If you have any control over when a routine informational meeting happens, do it after lunch,” says McGeorge. “This is a meeting where it’s usually just a check in from others, but not necessarily problem solving. It’s perfect for that quadrant. And some research suggests attending training or learning activities during this time is also good.”
The last quadrant
At the end of the day, when your mental agility and alertness drop, this is the time to do low-impact, high-intensity work.
“This is when you can have the greatest impact, wrapping up your day, tidying up loose ends,” says McGeorge. “Review the meetings and activities you have tomorrow so you can do any quick preparation that you might need to.”
This time can also be used to do things that will help your mornings go more smoothly, such as deciding and laying out what to wear or packing a lunch for you or your children.
“Whenever anyone feels overwhelmed by their schedule, out of control, or at risk of failing, I always have them start in the fourth quadrant,” says McGeorge. “Rethink how you end your day. You’re setting yourself up for success for the first two hours of the next morning.”
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While HR is doing new things, investing in employees’ wellbeing, ultimately that’s not their job, says Laurie Ruettimann, author of Betting On You: How to Put Yourself First and (Finally) Take Control of Your Career.
“Any positive effect of progressive HR policies is great, but the only reason HR exists to make sure there are no employment lawsuits,” she says. “HR is not there to be your advocate; they’re there to mitigate risk and protect the leadership team from being personally and professionally sued. I think we need to have an honest conversation about their function.”
If you want a better career and a better life, the secret is to stop looking for other people to solve your problems and reclaim the power that people think sits in human resources, says Ruettimann. And she advocates being your own HR department by playing a bigger role in the tasks they normally handle.
Start with the Hiring Process
Ruettimann encourages employees to start at the beginning when you’re looking for work.
“We often look to recruiters and human resources to interview us and pretend we don’t have any power,” she says. “We feel like victims of the applicant tracking system. There’s a way to look for work that is mature and emotionally regulated and puts you closer to the center of control.”
While Ruettimann admits candidates can’t control hiring decisions, they can and should become better educated about what an organization has to offer so they can choose employers that are better aligned with their career goals.
“Go old school and get sleuth-y on LinkedIn,” she says. Find people who work there (or used to work there) and and ask good questions. “Make sure you’re making the best decision you can possibly make. The more you can assert your autonomy and find out if the organization is committed to the values that you like, the better.”
Onboard Yourself
Once you have accepted a job offer, the next step is to play an active role in your onboarding. “Often, new hires don’t think about their own onboarding,” says Ruettimann. “They show up and their passwords aren’t ready, and everybody blames HR. But you don’t have to wait for your HR department to send you a packet of paperwork.”
Once you’ve been hired, Ruettimann recommends not waiting someone else to tell you when your first day is going to be. “You can have an opinion on those things,” she says. “For example, you could suggest that you want your first day to be a Tuesday because Mondays aren’t good for anybody.”
Ruettimann also recommends learning about your team before you show up, so you’re fully educated on your coworkers from day one. In addition, research how the organization is performing and what its weaknesses are.
“You can even ask your boss in advance, ‘What are the top three things you need me to do in the first 30 days?’” says Ruettimann. “Or ask, ‘Is there someone I can proactively talk to so I can hit the ground running?’ You can come in fully prepared to take on the world.”
Ruettimann also suggests setting up Google Alerts about your new employer, so you stay on top of company news, the CEO, and your boss.
“Be a journalist of your own life and of your own employment experience,” she says. “Keep an eye out for opportunities to talk with your new team about hot-button issues, challenges, and industry stories. There’s no reason why you can’t know the ins and outs of your organization.”
Plan Your Own Learning and Development
Another way you can be your own HR is by taking control over your career trajectory. “One of the earliest conversations you should have with your boss is to say, ‘Let’s talk about learning and development. What do you think I need to know in the next 30, 60, and 90 days? I actually have some opinions on that, too. And I’d like to talk about that.’”
“Have an educated perspective on how you can learn and grow because if you’re learning, you’re growing, and if you’re growing, you’re thriving, and that’s what life is all about,” says Ruettimann. “Take that on as your action item and don’t wait for an HR business partner to give you a plan.”
Take Accountability for Your Own Career
Ruettimann says she appreciates the progressive people practices that HR departments are creating, but they can create an attachment to the organization that can be unhealthy. Instead, practice “professional detachments.”
“It’s the art and science of treating your coworkers and your boss like clients,” she explains. “When you join an organization, you’ll be emotionally regulated, so you don’t think it’s your family.”
For example, if you have a coworker whose vibe doesn’t mesh with yours, thinking of them as a client would lead you to find a healthy compromise or a productive solution, instead of having conflicts that could lead you to involving HR.
“Professionals detachment allows you to solve some of those own early level conflicts, so you don’t actually have to run to HR,” says Ruettimann.
Being your own HR leader is the best way to fix work because it takes power away from a bureaucratic department and places it in your own hands, says Ruettimann.
“I think we can create our own progressive people practices as workers,” she says. “When we outsource this to this nefarious weird function in human resources, it becomes dysfunctional.”
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