A Productivity Hack So Simple, It Just Might Work
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An object in question is brought to your attention.
You deal with it right away, only once, and you move on to the next thing in question. Simple, right? NOT SO FAST, PAL!
Organization and productivity practices are not one size fits all. As someone who thinks considerably about these things, I have some ideas that work for me and my clients. I’ve also got some tips to maximize the effectiveness of this concept.
This principle can apply to physical objects and practical tasks. It works for decluttering your space and making you more productive. However, how we apply the One Touch Rule to each of these things is different. Let’s talk about physical objects first and how to maximize our efforts here.
Physical Objects
Put your stuff away when you transition activities throughout your day.
Think about Mr. Rogers for a second. As he sings his opening song, he comes in the front door, puts his bag in its spot, puts his jacket on a hanger in the closet, and puts his dress shoes in their spot under a bench. He does this every single time, all while singing, smiling, and loving life. Showing his viewers that sequence is no accident. He’s showing them a practical, good habit of putting your stuff away once. What kind of song do you think Fred would sing if he set his stuff down somewhere random and shuffled it around throughout the show, only to lose his left shoe and his keys when it was time to take us on an adventure in some cool factory? It probably would be about wasting time and frustrated feelings.
This is the reason your kindergarten teacher made you sing the “Clean Up” song between activities at school. So why not try the adult version of this in your life now? Make a habit, a ritual if you will, of creating a transition sequence of events. Choreograph your transition tasks and practice, practice PRACTICE until that transition sequence becomes automatic.
Example scenarios to maximize the One Touch Rule as it pertains to physical objects.
1. Put dirty clothes in the laundry basket as soon as you take them off. If you need to remove REALLY dirty clothes in the mudroom or garage, keep an extra laundry basket or hamper in those spaces. Bonus points if you use one of those cool laundry separators.
2. Hang your keys, at eye level, in a safe yet accessible spot. Bonus points if you use one of those cool “find my keys” sensors for those times you forget to hang up your keys.
3. Be like Fred and hang up your jacket and put away your shoes. Again, designate a spot near the point of entry to make this easy on yourself.
4. Responsibly dispose of to-go containers, water bottles (if you’re into the plastic kind), and other trash from your car every time you exit your vehicle for the day. Bonus points for vacuuming out your car periodically on the go.
5. When your latest subscription fix comes in the mail (you know the kind I’m talking about...) Open the box, file its contents, and break down the box immediately. I keep a box cutter handy in the kitchen to make this as easy as possible.
6. Wash and put your dishes away or in the dishwasher after a meal. This one is two-fold. I always encourage people to eat either in the kitchen or at the dining table. This discourages mindless snacking, encourages intentional family time, and eliminates piles of dirty dishes under your kids’ bed. Yea... they all do it if you let them.
Where the heck is “away?”
I’d be remiss if I didn’t clarify what “put away” means. Away is the home of your object. I teach clients that every single thing down to the smallest thumbtack needs to have a designated spot in your home. THIS IS THE KEY TO THE ONE TOUCH RULE FOR PHYSICAL OBJECTS!
Practical tasks
This is where things get a little more complicated.
I’m going to level with you. The One Touch Rule doesn’t always work here. Rules are meant to be broken, or at least softened and molded to better suit your needs. So let’s talk about how to do that.
I use the following points to determine how to proceed with tasks.
If you can do it in 5 minutes, do it now.
If you need over 5 minutes, assign it to an actionable sequence that ensures it will get done.
Let’s say you’ve got mail. Break down how to handle each piece.
1. Junk mail is easy and can be responsibly disposed of immediately. These are things that contain unwanted advertisements, fliers, spam, etc. Bonus points if you know how to unsubscribe from mailers and have a shredder. I can show you how! This takes less than five minutes.
2. Pay bills immediately or sort into piles to deal with by the due date. I’d recommend keeping the due dates on a calendar with auto-reminders. Bonus points if you go paperless and set up auto-pay. You can do this for almost everything.
The only time I don’t recommend auto pay is if you need to pay a large bill in installments throughout the month (like health insurance or car payments.) The actionable sequence here could be:
Pay--> File
Needs Attention--> Determine a due date--> Set a reminder--> Pay--> File.
3. File other mail that requires action by a certain date in the “Needs Attention” pile or file. You must designate a time each month, or preferably each week to process this mail so you don’t miss deadlines or lose out on benefits, etc. Again, set an auto-reminder that will notify you when it’s time to deal with this category.
4. Archive mail that needs to be stored. These are things like important permanent records, social security cards, birth records, business certificates, tax records, etc. You’ll need a safe place to store these things and I recommend setting up a file box with folders for each type of document. Keep the file box somewhere safe, where it won’t likely be exposed to harsh sunlight or water damage.
I strongly suggest setting up a filing system first so that you can archive immediately. Misplacing your social security card can be very stressful and I’ve seen it happen often. Once you set up your filing system, your actionable sequence could be:
Open--> File.
Hopefully, I’ve got your wheels turning and you can envision how to design your actionable sequences for other tasks as well. This modified One Touch Rule can be applied to most work or school tasks. As long as you have some consistent action plans, you’ll be less likely to procrastinate irresponsibly and forget to do important stuff.
Now go! Choreograph your routines and practice, practice, PRACTICE. Give yourself a solid start by practicing some patience and a little discipline and see how many more free minutes you add to your day. Reward yourself with something you love to do with that extra free time.
