The Weekly Review: The Ultimate Guide For Getting Things ...

Weekly review is one of the best compromises between planning for private and team productivity. Weekly review encourages team communication, while also ... Skiptothecontent CloseMenu TryWeekdoneToday ResourcesShowsubmenu Ebooks ObjectivesandKeyResults Plans,Progress,Problems LearningCenter BlogShowsubmenu OKR–Objectives&KeyResults ProgressReporting&TeamStatusUpdates TeamLeadership&Management InternalCommunication,Collaboration&Teamwork PPP–Plans,Progress,Problems Telecommuting&WorkingFromHome Productivity,TimeManagement&Efficiency EffectiveMeetings&MeetingPlanner WeekdoneProduct&CompanyNews EmployeeEngagement&Satisfaction WeekdoneCaseStudies&Interviews Inhisbook,GettingThingsDone,DavidAllenfrequentlyremindsyouthatyourmindisn’tagoodarchiveforyourwork.Weeklyreviewcomesinasaprocesstochangetheplansinyourheadtoexternalones.Thisletsyouspendalittletimeknowingwhatyouneedtoprioritizeandwhatneedstobetrashed.Thisway,youcanuseyourtimetoactuallyworkononethingatatimeinsteadofstressingout.Intheworkplace,weeklyreviewletsyourteamknowwhatyou’redoing.Thiswillimproveoverallcommunicationandalignteamandcompanygoals.  Takingthestepstoproperlyrevieweverythingonyourplateservesasthekeysteptoweeklyreview.Whenyoucompleteitemsorupdateexternally,yougaininsightintowhatyourworkmeansandwhatstepsyoucantaketotakeittothenextlevel.Likewise,weeklyreviewisagreatfeedbacksystemforothersandopensthedoorforcollaboration.  TheWeeklyReviewandGTDSystem DavidAllenbreaksuphisGTDweeklyreviewsysteminto11steps.Thesestepscanbereducedto4mainideas. Idea1:Process InDavidAllen’ssteps,processingincludesgatheringallthematerialsyouhave.Thisisthefirststep.Theseincludephysicaldocumentsaswellasmessagesandemails.  Onceeverythingiscollected,startprocessingitbyeitherrespondingtoit,completingit,ortrashingit.Determinewhetherornotcertainmaterialsareworthsavingornot.  Thethirdstepistoprocessanythoughtsyouhave.Onlydothisonceyourmaterialshavebeensorted.Fromthere,youcandeterminewhatyouneedtogetdonefortheweekandrecordit.  Idea2:Review Byfar,thisisthebiggestcategoryandthebulkofwhatyou’llbedoinginweeklyreview.(It’sinthenameafterall!)Theotherstepsaretoenforcetheusefulnessofthisone.Youshouldhaveasystemofwhattoreviewinwhatordersoyoucanuseyourtimeefficiently.  FIRST,reviewyournextactions.Thesearewhatyouneedtoaccomplishimmediatelyandaretasksyouarealreadyfamiliarwith.Makesuretomarkthemoffastheyarecompleted.Onlineappcanhelpbylettingyoumoveyouritemsfromaplancategorytoaprogress(done)category.  SECOND,reviewyourcalendar.Reviewyourcalendarfromthepreviousweekor,ifit’snotoverwhelming,fromthequarter.Thiscaninformyouaboutthingsyoumayhavemissedandsomereferencesorideasthatmayfurtherinspireyou.Then,reviewyourfuturecalendarandcheckfordeadlines.Thiswillletyouknowhowmuchtimeyouhavetocompleteprojectsandwhatactionablestepsyouneedtotaketoensureyoumeetthedeadline. THIRD,reviewallyourlargerprojects.Whichoneshaveyoucompleted?Whatstepsdoyouneedtotaketocompleteothers?Doyouneedtoaddanynewprojectstothelist?Makesurethat,inthisprocess,thatallyourprojectshaveanextactionpreparedsotheyactuallygetdone. Idea3:Track Lookatwhatyou’rewaitingfor.Seewhatyoucandoinordertoeasecommunicationstogetthesethingsdone.Makealistofwhatyouneedfromothersandwhatyournextactionablestepsarewhenyouobtainwhatyouneed.  Trackingalsohelpsyoumakemorecreativedecisions.Lookingoverandtrackingdownwhatwillbeusefulfromyoursomeday/maybelistisanimportantstepintheprocess. Idea4:Cleanse  Thefinalstepistoemptyyourmindofeverythingthathasbeenbotheringyouaboutyourschedule.Thisway,youknowwhatyoushouldbeworkingonanddon’thavetowastemoretimeworryingaboutthedeadlinesofotheritems.  ProductivityProblems IncreasedWorkload In2014,CornerstoneOnDemandcollaboratedwithKeltontoproduceastudyontheeffectsofincreasedworkloadonproductivity.Thestudyfoundthat68%ofpeoplesufferfromworkoverloadintheUSandfeelthatthisimpactstheirproductivity.  Thissurveyalsohighlightedthat52%ofthat68%feltthattheamountofworktheyneededtogetdonecouldn’tgetfinishedinaday.Thesestatisticshavebeenincreasing,drawingfromastudydonethepreviousyearinparticular.  Outofthe3maincausesofdecliningproductivityshowninthesurvey,61%foundthatworkoverloadwastheirmainhurdle.HavingworkpiledupandstressingaboutitistheclearmainproblemintheAmericanworkforce.  Thisconstantfocusonworkandfearofdeadlinesmeansthatworkisalwaysonthemind.So,insteadofplayingwiththekids,you’restuckinsidesendingemailsouttoschedulenextweek’smeetings.Allbecauseduringyourworkhoursyouspentanhourandahalfpanickingabouteverythingthatneedstobedone. Thebestwaytoengagewiththisistomakeanefforttowritedownwhatyouneedtoaccomplish,evenattheteamlevel.Thisway,everyoneknowswhattodoandwhenthedeadlinesare.Projectsthatarenotimmediatelyrelevantgettossedorputonasomedaylist,andthat’salltheattentionyouneedtogivethem. Remember:ifyousetasidetimetomapoutyourtasksandconsciouslyengageorgetridofthem,workwillbelesslikelytopileup.  Multitasking ThoughthestudyconductedbytheAmericanPsychologicalAssociationin2001isnearly20yearsoldnow,there’sareasonwhyeveryonecirculatesthestatisticthatmultitaskingdecreasesproductivityby45%.Thestudyspecificallyhighlightsneworcomplicatedtasksasthemainproductivitydrop.  Thismakessense.Ifsomethingisintroducedtoyou,it’sbettertofocusonthattaskexclusivelywithoutfeelingcommittedtodoing3otherthings.Ittakestimetoswitchyourbraintoanewtask.Therefore,switchingactivitiesactuallymakesyoulosetime.  Weeklyreviewcanhelpyouwiththisbyforcingyouoryourteamtoactuallyprioritizewhatmattersthemost.Byrecordingeverythinginonesession,youareinformedaboutwhatthemostimportantnextstepis.Takingcareofsmalltasksfirstmeansthatwhenyoucompleteeverythingyouneedto,youhavetimetoengagewithcreativeorriskyideaswithoutfearofotherworknotgettingdone.  Makingalistandcrossingoffoneitematatimeisprobablyyourbestbettonotgetoverwhelmed.  WorkinginGroups Generally,thereseemstobefavoritismtowardshavingmoreprivatespaceintheworkplace.Meetingsomewhereinthemiddleoftheprivateandthepublicispreferredby71%ofemployeesasof2019.  Despitethedislikeofopenspacesbyemployees,accordingtothesamesurvey,mostpeopleconsiderteambuildingthemostimportantelementofafunctionalworkplace.43%desireaworkenvironmentthatpromotescollaborationandteambuilding. However,themaindistractionsintheworkplacearealsofellowteammates,sothisisadangerousbalance.It’sobviousthatunstructuredcommunicationintheworkplace(AKA,meetinghell)isdreadfulandhurtseveryone’sworkflow.  Weeklyreviewisoneofthebestcompromisesbetweenplanningforprivateandteamproductivity.Weeklyreviewencouragesteamcommunication,whilealsoprovidingusefulinformationforcollaborationinsteadofpointless,dead-endmeetings.  Technology Technologysitsattheforefrontofmakingproductivitymoredifficultandeasieratthesametime.Ontheonehand,generally,employeesdon’tliketheprocessoflearningnewtoolsorsystems.Thisisespeciallytrueofolderemployeeswhodidn’tgrowupduringtheageoftheinternet.  Likewise,there’stheproblemofwhentechnologyfailsandthefactthattechnologycanbeadistraction.  Thishardlyprovestherelevanceoftheproductivityparadoxinthe21stcentury.Technologyhelpsoptimizeprocessessoyoucangetthingsdonefasterandmakesiteasiertokeepreportspublic.Youneedtomakedecisionsaboutwhat’suseful,whattoolstouse,andhowtoavoidthepitfalls.  Hubstaffranaproductivitysurveyin2018.Itconfirmedthattechnologywillcontinuetobeamajorfactorinproductivityefforts. InformationOverload Weeklyreviewisespeciallyusefulwhendealingwithaninformationoverloadproblem.Thebasicideahereisthere'stoomuchnewordifficultinformationtoprocess,soshuttingdownisinevitable. Thestructureofweeklyreviewimmediatelyaddressesthisproblem. HowWeeklyReviewImprovesProductivity  We'regoingtogetstraighttothepoint.Weeklyreviewservesasasystemforcollaboration,taskmanagement,andlargerprojects.Thisultimatelypreventsyoufromspendingtimeonthingsyoushouldn't.Likewise,havinganagreed-onsystemthateveryoneinyourteamusesmeansthatyoursystemdoesn'tjustbenefityou. Whenitcomestogoal-setting,weeklyreviewservesasagreatwaytoconnectyoursmaller,actionableitemstolargergoals.And,hey!Ifoneofyourgoalsistogetaholdofyourtaskandprojectmanagementsystems,thenweeklyreviewcanserveasyouranswer!Productivityshouldbeapriorityateverylevel,afterall. GettingThingsDone(GTD)reliesonweeklyreviewtoworkoutsidethepersonallevel.DavidAllen'sGettingThingsDoneisagreatfirststepintofixingproductivityissues.Buttheissuesregardingthesystemforthelargerteamorcompanygoalsisn'taddressedmuch.Allen'ssystemworksverywellfortheselevels,butrequiresabitofadaptationtoreallyimplementthroughoutanentirecompany. Productivitysoftware Likeanyproductivitysystem,GTDisnotperfect.Thebookdesperatelyneedsanupdatefromitsancientoriginsof2002.Itdoesn'taddressthetransparencyandproductivitytoolsthatcloud-basedsoftwareprovidesnow.Likewise,itfocusesfartoomuchonwhat'sbecomingobsoleteinthebusinessworld.Thebiggestofthesearephysicalpaperdocumentsinthe"GetClear"stage.Likewise,despiteAllensayingthatGTDcanworkforprojects,youneedalargersystemtoreallybringprojectsin.That'swhyGTDworkssowellwithsystemslikeweeklyrevieworOKRs. Obviously,thesystemisstillsolid.Itjustneedstobeadaptedtothemodernworkforce. AftergettingthemethodologyfromAllen,it'sagoodideatoinvestinaproductivitytoolthatspecializesinweeklyreview.Weekdoneservesasagreatoptionbyconnectingtaskstooverarchinggoalssothateveryonecanseewhateveryoneisworkingon. UsingtraditionaltaskmanagersactuallymakesitmoredifficulttodoGTDright(frompersonalexperience)!Therearen'tmanyGTDexclusiveappsoutthere,andthosethatmarketthemselvesassoaregenerallyplainol'taskmanagerslikeJIRAorASANA.Missingfeaturesaboundandthesetaskmanagersmisstheconnectiontothelargercompanygoals. Weeklyreviewalsoiseasiertoadheretootherproductivityhabits. WeeklyReviewChecklist DavidAllenhaswrittenextensivelyonwhatshouldbeincludedinaweeklyreviewandwhatshouldn'tbe.It'sgoodtofollowabasicguidetomakesurethatyou'reontherighttrack.TheweeklyreviewishowyouimplementGTDandisyourmainkeytosuccess.Ifyouarenewtotheprocessandhaven'tmadeahabitofit,thenfollowingaweeklyreviewchecklist.Thisensuresthateveryonecangetusedtothesystem. DavidAllensummarizes11stepsforweeklyreview. Thesefitunder3categories. GetClear Collectwhatyouneedtogetdone,respondtoemails,gothroughallthematerialsyouhaveto.Emptyyourthoughtsandwritethemdownexternally.Nomatterhowminorthedetails,makesuretorecordthem.Thesewillserveasthebasisforyourweeklyreview. GetCurrent ReviewyournextactionsCheckyourcalendar:bothfromthepastweekandtheupcomingweekRecallwhatyou'rewaitingforfromothersReviewyourprojectlistandcomeupwithactionableitemsforallprojects GetCreative ReviewyourmaybeslistandseewhatcouldbereasonablyaccomplishedRecordanyout-thereideasthatmaylingerandputtheminyourmaybesforthenextweeklyreview Checkoutourfreeweeklyreviewchecklistwithdownloadablepdf! AnExampleoftheWeeklyReviewProcess OnethingDavidAllendoesn'tcovermuchinhisbookisthetimeframeoftheweeklyreviewprocess.Thiscanvarybyperson,butit'sstillgoodtohaveatemplateinmind.Sinceweeklyreviewisaboutplanningthenextweek,werecommendthatyoustarttheprocesstheFridaybefore. Doingweeklyreviewsonaweeklybasistakestimeandcommitment.Dedicatingyourselftoaweeklyroutineisfareasierwhenweeklyreviewisimplementedasateam.Ifreviewispartofthereportingprocess,thenindividualsaremoreaccountabletoactuallydoit.Improvingfocusforanentireteammeansgreaterproductivitybecomesagroupeffortandnotjustanindividualone. So,here'showmyweeklyreviewprocesslooks: FridayAfternoon MyweeklyreviewstartsonFriday.IuseWeekdoneinordertocompilemyreviewsince,youknow,it'sourproduct.MyentirescheduleforthecomingweekdependsonwhatIdecideforweeklyreviewonFriday.Likewise,weveryrarelyhavemeetingsonFriday.WekeepmeetingsforMondayorWednesdaysoFridaycanbesavedtoself-reflectandplan. CleartheMind Personally,Itakecareofbusyworkfirst.Icleanoutthedishesinthesink,tidyupmydesk,andlookatmycalendar.Doingsmall,non-communicativetasksfirstensurestheydon'tbecomedistractionslaterwhenI'mseriouslydoingmyweeklyreviewprocess. CatchingUpandIdentifyingProblems UsingWeekdone'sset-up,Ilookatmyweeklytasks.Whatgotdone?Whatdidn't?ArethetasksthatIhadthisweekworthkeepingforthenextweek?Likewise,IidentifyproblemsIranintointhepreviousweek.MaybeI'mwaitingonsomeoneformaterials?Or,maybeIwasjustdistractedbyout-of-workthings?Theseareusefultowritedown. Fromthere,Irecordwhatcouldhavebeendonebetterasateamandratemyjobsatisfactionfortheweek.TheseincludemyconfusionlevelandhowIfeltabouttheteam. Fromthere,it'stimetohandlethingsstepbystep: ReplyordeleteallemailsReplytoSkypeconversationsandchatgroupsReviewpreviousandupcomingmeetingsandeventsReviewprojectsandOKRsandupdatethemComeupwithnextactionsthatreflecttheseprojectsandOKRsfornextweekReviewwhatI'mwaitingfor 10-20MinuteMondayPowerSession OnMonday,Itake10-20minutestowritedowneverythingnewthatenteredmyheadthat'snotalreadyonmytaskmanagerorWeekdone.Ireviewtheminthisorder Reviewpre-existingprojectsandlookatthemCommunicateviaSkypeandEmailwhoeverneedstobemessagedAddanymeetingstothescheduleTalkinpersonwithwhoeverneedstobetalkedtoWritedownanythingelseonmymindthatneedstogetdone:errands,trips,familytocontact,etc. ReflectandRepeat Fromhere,you'llhavethetoolstocreateamorecomprehensivereviewwhenFridaycomes. UsingWeeklyReviewinaTeam Thetwomainwaystouseweeklyreviewasateamaretohaveacloud-based,transparenttoolwhereeveryonecanseeupdatesandtoconductweeklyreviewmeetings.Fromthere,youcanusetheentireteam'sbrainpowertodetermineifyou'rereachingourgoals.Ifnot,whatneedstobechanged? Thereareaninfinitenumberoftoolsthatofferacloud-basednewsfeedandweeklyreportingsystem.But,sinceIdoworkforWeekdone,WeekdoneisobviouslythetoolI'mthemostusedto.WeekdonesyncswithotherapplicationsincludingAsanaandJIRA,soit'seasytobringmaterialstoWeekdoneusingpreexistingtoolsWHILEincreasingoverallcompanytransparency. ← Top10BestVirtualTeamManagementSoftware2022 → ObjectivesandKeyResults–EasierthanEverinWeekdone Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email TheBestGTDWeeklyReviewChecklist:WithFreePDF ThisGTDweeklyreviewchecklistshouldhelpyouidentifywhatneedstogetdone.Bywritingthesedown,youcanvisualizehowtomoveforward.Continuereading WeekdoneInformationFindusWhat'snew Thiswebsiteusescookiestoimproveyourexperience.AcceptRejectReadMorePrivacy&CookiesPolicy Close PrivacyOverview Thiswebsiteusescookiestoimproveyourexperiencewhileyounavigatethroughthewebsite.Outofthesecookies,thecookiesthatarecategorizedasnecessaryarestoredonyourbrowserastheyareasessentialfortheworkingofbasicfunctionalitiesofthewebsite.Wealsousethird-partycookiesthathelpusanalyzeandunderstandhowyouusethiswebsite.Thesecookieswillbestoredinyourbrowseronlywithyourconsent.Youalsohavetheoptiontoopt-outofthesecookies.Butoptingoutofsomeofthesecookiesmayhaveaneffectonyourbrowsingexperience. 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