Two weeks ago I watched my head of product break down a task into small pieces, and I relished in how much simpler it made our work. Then I realised I have basically stopped doing this myself.

At some point during the years of trying to work smarter and do better stuff I at some point stopped doing this basic thing. It got me thinking, what else have I stopped?

Weight lifting has taught me hard way that the basic steps exist for a reason. You cannot cheat gravity. And if you don’t build up strength properly you will hurt yourself. This idea works surprisingly well in all kinds of complex activity.

If you don’t do basic time management, no amount of hacks will save you.

If you don’t build code using basic best practices, your micro architecture card house will fall.

If you don’t eat and drink regularly, you will feel like garbage.

So what are the basics of working? And am I practicing them enough? I figured I would google it, list them here, practice them and then report back.

List of basic ways of shipping

• Break projects or big tasks down into small tasks [Report]

• Prioritise tasks: Eisenhower matrix [Report]

• Personal Kabans

Coming up

• Basic time management (calendars and time boxes)

• Todo lists

• What are the constraints you’re working in?

“The question to ask yourself is, “Assuming a particular set of constraints, how can I be as effective as possible?” For example: * Assuming I can only work from 9 AM to 5 PM, how can I make the most money possible? * Assuming I can only write for 15 minutes each day, how can I finish my book as fast as possible? * Assuming I can only exercise for 3 hours each week, how can I get in the best shape possible?” — James Clear, The Downside of Work-Life Balance

• Batching tasks together

• Take naps

• Pomodoro Technique

• Accountability partners

Did I miss anything? Please tell me.