As someone who’s always looking for ways to be more productive, and get out of my own so to speak, my eyes lit up when I stumbled upon this thing called the Eisenhower Matrix.
Named after Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States, the Eisenhower Matrix is a systematic tool designed to help people prioritize tasks into 4 quadrants. More detail on that in a bit.
On any given day, I have a seemingly endless stockpile of to-dos on my plate, and as someone with ADHD, 10 tasks for the day can sometimes feel like 50.
The challenge I’ve found, and maybe you have too, is that it’s difficult to know exactly where to begin.
And as a result, very little actually gets done, and today’s tasks get pushed to tomorrow, next week, next month, you get the idea.
In this post, I’ll show you how to properly implement the Eisenhower Matrix into your life (or the life of a loved one) to reduce overwhelm and get things done.
Let’s go!
Turning The Abstract to Concrete
As a former special education teacher and now someone who works one-on-one with teens and adults on the spectrum, ADHD, etc., I know how challenging abstract concepts can be.
In this case, when I say “abstract”, I’m referring to how one decides which tasks should take priority and which should take a back seat.
For example, how would one decide which of the following tasks should take priority?
- Fill out financial aid paperwork
- Buy my brother a birthday present
- Refill bird feeders
- Do laundry
- Play video games
- Study for math test
I don’t know about you, but when I look at the list above, it’s really hard to tell which tasks are most important. It’s abstract, which is another way of saying, we don’t have enough information to make an informed decision.
So, how do we figure out what to prioritize and how do we teach this to our kids?
The 4 Quadrants of the Eisenhower Matrix
The Eisenhower Matrix helps turn an abstract list of tasks into something more concrete.
Tasks get placed in one of four quadrants:
- Quadrant 1: Tasks that are both important and urgent
- Quadrant 2: Tasks that are important but not urgent
- Quadrant 3: Tasks that are not important but urgent
- Quadrant 4: Tasks that are both not urgent and not important
To help us understand which tasks go in which quadrants, we first have to define “urgent” and “important”.
Definition of “Urgent”
In short, urgent tasks require an immediate reaction. Like school deadlines, for example.
Definition of “Important”
Tasks that fall in the important category often contribute to our long term goals. Things like exercising or practicing coding skills, for example.
Now that we have a foundational understanding of what urgent and important mean, I’ll go over each quadrant in detail and show you how to decide which quadrant tasks should go in.
Quadrant 1 – Important & Urgent (Do Now)
Based on our definitions above, quadrant 1 should be reserved for tasks that require a reaction on our part AND contribute to our long term goals. These tasks should take priority over all others.
Consider the following example…
Long Term Goal: Enroll in video game coding school to become a full time video game coder.
Scenario: About a week ago, you found out that your application was not accepted to the college of your choice and that you’ll have to wait until next term to apply again. But, good news! You just received another email saying that a spot just opened up and you have 24 hours to respond before they contact the next available applicant.
Run it through the test:
- Requires a reaction on our part? YES
- Contributes to our long term goals? YES
Action: Respond to that email now.
Quadrant 2 – Important & Not Urgent (Decide or Schedule)
Quadrant 2 should be reserved for tasks that do not require a reaction on our part but they do contribute to our long term goals.
Consider the following example…
Long Term Goal: Design and code a role playing game for iOS and Android.
Scenario: You’re in the early states of learning how to code and you have a great idea for a mobile app role playing game. The only way that you’ll be able to turn your idea into reality is if you practice coding everyday and refine your skill.
Run it through the test:
- Requires a reaction on our part? NO
- Contributes to our long term goals? YES
Action: Schedule a time to practice coding on a recurring basis.
Quadrant 3 – Not Important & Urgent (Delegate or Automate)
Tasks that appear in quadrant 3 can be very deceptive and can often masquerade as important (making them quadrant 1 tasks), when really they’re often distractions other people’s responsibility to handle. Based on our definitions, quadrant 3 tasks require a reaction but do not contribute to our long term goals.
Quadrant 3 tasks are tricky as they often also include day-to-day tasks like cleaning the fish tank, making the bed, checking email, doing dishes, etc. Essentially, anything that needs to get done but is not important in terms of your long term goals.
There are a couple of ways to handle tasks like this:
- You can delegate them (i.e. ask someone else to do them for you)
- You can automate them
Consider the following example…
Long Term Goal: Build a thriving online community for Dungeons & Dragons enthusiasts
Scenario: As your online community (let’s say Facebook group) gets setup, you keep getting distracting notifications every time a new person asks to join, which pulls your focus away from creating meaningful content for your group.
Run it through the test:
- Requires a reaction on our part? YES
- Contributes to our long term goals? NO
Action: Delegate accepting/declining new member requests to another member whom you trust with admin privileges. Or you can automate the process by setting up rules such that if a new member is already a member of a related group, their request will be automatically approved.
Please note though that sometimes, tasks that seem like they should be in quadrant 3, should actually be in quadrant 2. That is to say that putting tasks in quadrant 3 doesn’t give you an excuse not to do them. If something is your responsibility (even if it’s mundane), then it should be considered “important”, even if it doesn’t directly impact your long term goals.
Quadrant 4 – Not Important & Not Urgent (Delete or Postpone)
These are tasks that are neither important nor urgent and generally considered to be a waste of time as they aren’t progressing you towards a desired long term goal. Again, we’re dealing with subjectivity here but for me, this includes things like browsing YouTube or Reddit & playing video games.
Don’t Be Rigid For Rigidity Sake
The Eisenhower Matrix is a tool, not the end all be all for task management. Sometimes, tasks won’t fit cleanly into one quadrant or another, and that’s ok.
The Law of Diminishing Returns & Quadrant 3 Tasks
Sometimes, quadrant 3 tasks won’t be able to be easily automated or delegated, or the time it takes to automate or delegate it ends up taking way longer than if you were to just do the task yourself.
Take cleaning the bathroom for example, a fairly obvious quadrant 3 task. It needs to get done and it’s almost certainly not connected to any long term goals. If you live alone, your options are to clean it yourself or hire someone to clean it. If you opt to hire someone, that potentially creates several more tasks: vetting house cleaners, budgeting, scheduling a time with the cleaner, making sure they are paid, etc.
The question you should ask here is: Is delegating this task worth it in the long run vs. spending 5-10 minutes per week cleaning the bathroom? What is your time worth to you?
Only you know the answer to this.
A Bit More About Quadrant 4 Tasks
No one is expecting you to live exclusively in quadrants 1-3. Being productive ALL THE TIME is a great way to get burned out and it really bothers me how like every blog post I’ve read about the Eisenhower Matrix makes it seems as though any time at all spent on quadrant 4 tasks means you’re a lazy slob. This is straight up incorrect.
Generally speaking, your waking day will more or less work out like this:
- Quadrant 1 – 10%
- Quadrant 2 – 60%
- Quadrant 3 – 20%
- Quadrant 4 – 10%
Give yourself a break for crying out loud. If 90% of your day is in quadrants 1-3, you’ve earned that 10% to do mindless activities. Because, if you don’t, what good will you be the next day anyway? Know what I mean?
Eisenhower Matrix Step By Step Implementation
Step 1 – Brain Dump on Blank Sheet of Paper
When you wake up in the morning, or shortly after, take 5-10 minutes to make a list of all of your thoughts and worries for the day swirling around your head. Don’t worry if this doesn’t make sense, if it seems too broad, or if it’s out of order. That doesn’t matter. The key here is to get it out of your head and onto a sheet of paper. You’ll know you’re done when you’re struggling to come up with anything else.
Note: this can (and should) include your desires to do “non-productive” tasks.
For me, this morning, it looked something like this:
- Order landscaping fabric from Amazon
- Begin Eisenhower Matrix blog post
- Update WordPress plugins
- Check Facebook ad performance
- Email bank details to accountant
- Plan activities for job coaching session on Monday
- Play new racing game
- Laundry
Learn the full brain dumping process here.
Step 2 – Draw or Print Out Eisenhower Matrix For The Day
I created a simple free Eisenhower Matrix template you can use whenever you want. Just enter your email below:
Step 3 – Run Each Task on Your Brain Dump Through The Test
Run each list item on your brain dump sheet through the test from earlier and write the task in the appropriate quadrant.
For example…
Task: Order landscaping fabric from Amazon
- Requires a reaction on our part? NO
- Contributes to our long term goals? YES (my goal is to have a weed free garden this year)
Action: Place this task in quadrant 2 and schedule it for later when I plan to do other personal tasks on my computer
Step 4 – Batch Similar Items
If there are multiple tasks within the same quadrant that require you to be on the computer for example, I would recommend doing these tasks in around the same time. You can separate these out in whatever way works best for you. Personally, I like to write the group name “(computer)” next to the appropriate tasks. Other options may include creating separate sections within each quadrant, using different colors, etc.
Step 5 – Make Sure All Your Quadrant 1 Tasks Get Done First
As we discussed earlier, these are both urgent and important so be sure to tackle them first.
Then, move on to tasks you’ve scheduled in quadrant 2, and so on.
Step 6 – Keep Your Matrix With You Throughout The Day & Revise As Needed
Cross tasks off as you complete them, add new tasks as they come up, and give yourself reminders to take breaks.
There’s a good chance that quadrant 1 tasks will come up unexpectedly throughout the day but remember that quadrant 3 tasks often like to disguise themselves as quadrant 1 so be sure to stop and think before giving in to distraction.
And that’s pretty much it!
I hope you’ll give the Eisenhower Matrix a try and feel free to leave a comment below with your thoughts 🙂
I loved this article! I came looking for some clarification for myself and now I’m thinking of how to get my kids to start thinking this way. It’s even more important with Covid forcing lots of virtual learning periods. Thanks!
Finally! Something addressed the issues I’ve been having with the Priority matrix and spending too much time searching Google for some sanity on the topic. I’ve read everything from I’m never supposed to ever play games, watch tv, or surf the internet to I’m suppose to delegate someone to schedule all my meetings for me, to make my social media posts, and to paying my tickets, if I get them. It’s pure insanity and has been driving me a bit crazy! I’m already struggling to identify what’s important and what’s urgent (surprisingly, mostly the latter), and everyone seems happy to say to use the matrix for every single aspect of your life while only addressing mostly work-related tasks and seemingly to never have fun unless you’re a workaholic who just loves being productive and working. Occasionally, someone will say it’s important to have a good work-life balance but they never show a matrix that reflects this. *sigh* Anyhoo, this is the first article I’ve found that even comes close to answering my questions and addressing my concerns. Who knew searching Google could be so frustrating! 😉
Hey! I’m back! I do have some questions if you have some time to answer them. In particular, I’m trying to figure out when something should be in the Urgent & Important quadrant versus just Important but not Urgent. Some are very clearly “do right now,” but others have deadlines that aren’t today or tomorrow or COULD be done later until they DO become urgent. However, living in Quadrant I is supposed to be bad and doesn’t feel good. So, like I could get gasoline today, which is Important, but there’s still other items in Quadrant I, so should I not? And I have deadlines for Important tasks several days away or next week; so since they have deadlines, are they Urgent and should be in QI or what? These are just two examples, but mostly it’s the biggest problem I run into. Generally, I can tell what things are Important…well, I’m good at identifying the definitely Urgent and Important and long-term Important, but sometimes I wonder where morning routine tasks like showering and stuff fall. I mean should I even make my bed? It’s just very confusing to me sometimes when other Important tasks seem more Urgent. Plus, most of the examples I’ve seen online never put these things in their priority matrices. That being said, I should probably finish reading this article beyond the initial skim I did, but if it’s not there, I would appreciate any guidance you can provide.