Eisenhower Matrix | Prioritization Framework - ProductPlan

The Eisenhower Matrix is a productivity, prioritization, and time-management framework designed to help you prioritize a list of tasks or agenda items by ... ProductPlan TrynowSignin EisenhowerMatrix WhatistheEisenhowerMatrix? TheEisenhowerMatrixisaproductivity,prioritization,andtime-managementframeworkdesignedtohelpyouprioritizealistoftasksoragendaitemsbyfirstcategorizingthoseitemsaccordingtotheirurgencyandimportance. AlsocalledanEisenhowerDecisionMatrix,EisenhowerBox,orUrgent-ImportantMatrix,thisapproachconsistsofdrawingafour-boxsquarewithanx-axislabeledUrgentandNotUrgent,andthey-axislabeledImportantandNotImportant.Then,grouptheitemsonyourlistintooneofthefourboxes,withtheUrgent-and-Importantboxintheupperleftrequiringyourimmediateaction. What’stheHistoryoftheEisenhowerMatrix? PresidentDwightEisenhowerhimselfdevelopedtheconceptbehindwhatwouldlaterbecalledtheEisenhowerMatrix.Heusedittohelphimprioritizeanddealwiththemanyhigh-stakesissueshefacedasaUSArmygeneral,thenasSupremeAlliedCommanderofNATOForces,andeventuallyaspresidentoftheUnitedStates. Decadeslater,authorStephenCoveypopularizedEisenhower’sframeworkinhisbookThe7HabitsofHighlyEffectivePeople.AsaresultofCovey’swork,theEisenhowerMatrixhasbecomeawidelyusedtime-managementanddecision-makingframeworkinbusiness. BelowisasampleEisenhowerBoxtakenfromanotherofCovey’sbooks,FirstThingsFirst. EisenhowerMatrixTemplate: HowDoYouUsetheEisenhowerMatrix? Afteryou’vedrawnyourEisenhowerMatrix,youwillhavefouremptyboxes,twobytwo.Thiswillallowyoutocategorizeyourto-doitemsintooneoffourpossibledescriptions: FirstQuadrant (upperleft):urgentandimportant SecondQuadrant (upperright):important,butnoturgent ThirdQuadrant(lowerleft):notimportant,buturgent FourthQuadrant(lowerright):neitherimportantnorurgent AccordingtoproductivityexpertJamesClear,youcanunderstandtheitemsineachofthefourquadrantswiththissimpleframework:Do,decide,delegate,anddon’tdo(ordelete). Dothetasksinquadrant1. Thesearetheitemsthatarebothurgentandimportant,andthey,therefore,demandyouractionrightaway. Itemsinthisquadranttypicallyincludecrisesandissueswithdeadlines.Oneexample,CoveyexplainsinhissampleEisenhowerMatrixabove,mightbeafireinyourkitchen. Decideonwhentodealwiththetasksinquadrant2. Theseareessentialissues,butthey’renoturgentandthereforedon’trequireyourimmediateaction.Sothesearetheitemsyou’llwanttoscheduleworkforalatertime. Quadrant2itemsaretypicallytasksorprojectsthatcanhelpyoupersonallyorprofessionallyorhelpyourbusinessachievealong-termgoal. Delegatethetasksinquadrant3. Theseareurgentitemsthatpopupanddemandimmediateattention.Butbecausethey’renotnecessary,theydon’tnecessarilyrequireyourtime,andtheycan,therefore,assignthemtosomeoneelse. Examplesoftheseitemswouldberequestsforhelpfromcolleaguesoremailsmarkedurgent.Ifthecontentoftheseinterruptionsdoesn’trisetoyourlevelofimportance,delegatethemtoothers. Deletetheitemsinquadrant4. TheseitemsinyourEisenhowerMatrixarenotessentialorurgent,soyoucan,inmostcases,erasethemfromyourlist. Quadrant4itemsincludescrollingthroughFacebook,checkingTwitter,orplayinggames.Thesetasksareokayifyouhavetimeorneedabreakfromthemoreimportantandmoreurgentitems,buttheyshouldnotdisplacethemonyourlistofpriorities. EisenhowerMatrixforTimeManagement WhiletheEisenhowerMatrixisprimarilyameansforprioritization,itofferssimilarbenefitsforfiguringouthowindividualsorteamsshouldspendtheirtime.Businessdoesn’tnecessarilyequaloptimaloutput.However,wecanspendourtimeonplentyoftaskswithminimalimpact.TheEisenhowerMatrixacknowledgesthisandinsteadhelpspeoplemakethemostofthetimetheyhave. Forinstance,itemsinquadrant1areurgent,sotheseshouldcommandyourimmediateattention.Tacklingtheseitemsandcrossingthemoffthelistfirstensureswhatwasmostpressingandimportantdoesn’tgetdropped.Onlyonceeverythinginthefirstquadrantisfinished—ortakenasfaraspossibleforthemoment—shouldyourgazewanderelsewhere. Quadrants Quadrant2containseverythingthat’simportantbutisn’tastime-sensitive.Therefore, thesearetheitemsyoushouldchipawayatonceyou’veclearedeverythinginthefirstquadrant.Ideally,youcanmakeenoughprogressearlyenoughthattheyneverbecomeurgentandmigratetoquadrant1. Nextupisgettingeverythinginquadrant3offyourplatealtogetherbydelegatingittosomeoneelse.Onlyitemsyou’recomfortablewithdelegatingshouldappearthere,tobeginwith,butoncetheydo,theyshouldgettransferedtotheirnewowner. Andwhiledelegatingquadrant3tasksfreesupsomeofyourtime,it’squadrant4thatopensupyourschedule.That’sbecauseyou’renevergoingtodoanyofthem!Justcrossthemoffandbreatheasighofreliefthatthere’salittlelessonyourto-dolist. Ofcourse,quadrant4itemsspanbeyondunnecessarytasks,butalsotheunrewardingtime-wasterscontributingtoyourtimecrunchinthefirstplace.Continuouslycheckingsocialmedia,doomscrollingthroughthenews,binge-watchingtelevisionshows,andburrowingdowntherabbitholesoftheInternetneverofficiallymakeourto-dolists,buttheysuckupashockingamountofourtime. Byrecognizingthisreality,slottingtheseitemsinquadrant4,you’reconsciouslydecidingtoavoidorabstainfromhabitsandbehaviorsthatprovidelittlerewardwhileslashingproductivity.Ifnothingelse,constantlyremindingyouwhatNOTtodoshouldopenupafewmorehourstoknockoutthingsyoushouldbedoing. EisenhowerMatrixExamples Furthermore,toputtheoryintopractice,hereareafewexamplesofwhatanEisenhowerMatrixworksindifferentscenarios. ProductOwner Inaddition,productownerssitatthenexusofimplementingtheproductvisionbasedontheprioritiesofthebusiness.They’redoingwellwhentheproductdevelopmentteamhaswhattheyneedtomoveforward,andproductownersfailwhenthey’reabottleneck. AnEisenhowerMatrixcanhelpproductownersmakesuretheytakecareofwhatmattersmostfortheoverallsuccessofthesprintandproduct. Urgent Completeuserstoriesdevelopersarewaitingfor Attenddailyscrum Getsign-offonkeychangerequest Important Groombacklog Prioritizeitemsforthenextsprint Updatestakeholdersonstatusandprogress Delegate Trainsalesonnewfeatures Writemarketingcopy Create/updatetestplan Updateuserdocumentation Delete Manageperformanceofindividualproductdevelopmentteammembers Writeorreviewcode Plan/runscrummeetings ProjectManager Sinceprojectmanagersspendalldaytellingotherpeoplewhattheyshouldbeworkingon,theyshouldapplyasimilarlenstotheirowndailylives.Moreover,anEisenhowerMatrixcallsoutwhatdemandstheirattentionandwhatshouldgetleftforothers(ornooneatall). Urgent Keepstakeholdersabreastofprojectstatus Assesstheimpactofachangerequest Getmissinginformationholdingbackimplementation Important Identifyresource/skillgaps Reviewprojectbudgetvs.actuals Facilitateorderingofequipment/materials/licensesrequiredtocompleteprojects Scheduleusabilitytesting Delegate Plan/runscrummeetings Writetechnicalspecifications Researchtechnicalfeasibility Delete Writeorreviewcode Hiringtechnicalstaff Organizeteam-buildingactivities DirectorofProduct Asafull-timemanager,DirectorsofProductmustdelegatetosucceed,nottomentionensuringthatthegoals,vision,andobjectivesarecleartoeveryoneontheirteam.AnEisenhowerMatrixmayassistinhowtheyallocatetheirtimetomaintainahigh-performingproductteam. Urgent Addresskeycustomerissue Completeproductvision ReportonKPIsandmetrics Finishslidesfortheboardmeeting Important Mentorstaff Updatemasterroadmap Competitoranalysis Completebusinesscaseforproductlineextension Delegate Attenddailyscrum(s) Writeuserstories Groombacklog Delete Holdmeetingswithnoobjectivesorgoals Micromanagestaff Obsessaboutproductreviewsorsocialmediamentions TrytheEisenhowerMatrixforYourself AsEisenhowersaidinhisfirsttermaspresident,“Ihavetwokindsofproblems,theurgentandtheimportant.Theurgent[problems]arenotimportant,andtheimportantareneverurgent.” Inaddition,learninghowtoviewbothyourto-dolistsandyourlistoflong-termgoalsthroughthisprismwillhelpyouprioritizeyourdays,weeks,andlongertimeframesmorestrategicallyandeffectively. Subsequently,ifyouhaveanever-growinglistofgoalsandtasksandyouhaven’tyetfoundaprioritizationframeworktohelpyoudeterminewhichitemstotacklefirst,drawinganEisenhowerMatrixisanexcellentplacetostart. 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