The four quadrants
Quadrant 1 (urgent and important) holds crises and deadlines: do these first. Quadrant 2 (important, not urgent) holds planning, exercise, learning and relationships: schedule these in your calendar. Quadrant 3 (urgent, not important) holds interruptions and some requests: delegate or limit them. Quadrant 4 (neither) holds time-wasters: drop them.
Why quadrant 2 matters most
Most long-term progress comes from important but not urgent work, and it is the first thing to be skipped. If your matrix is full of quadrant 1 and 3 tasks, the fix is to book quadrant 2 time before the week fills up.
Using it daily
Spend two minutes each morning sorting today's tasks, then move quadrant 1 and 2 items into time blocks. PlanBot can do that scheduling step for you from a plain description of your tasks.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Eisenhower Matrix?
A way of sorting tasks by urgency and importance into four groups: urgent and important (do now), important but not urgent (schedule), urgent but not important (delegate or limit) and neither (drop). It is often linked to US President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who is said to have organised his work this way.
What is the difference between urgent and important?
Urgent tasks demand attention now, often because someone else is waiting. Important tasks contribute to your longer-term goals. Many urgent tasks are not important, and many important tasks are never urgent until it is too late.
Where is my list stored?
In your browser on this device only. Nothing is uploaded. Clearing your browser data removes it.
How many tasks should be in the first quadrant?
If it is more than a handful, you may be in constant firefighting. Try to move recurring urgent items into the schedule quadrant by planning ahead.