要做的太多，能干的太少？看看这个技巧！
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老桑说
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「 朋友，你好，我是老桑。 」
当你读这篇文章时，我相信你在想你本可以做一些其他的事情，比如：
为一门课或考试而学习
锻炼身体
实习或工作
寻找工作
回邮件或其他社交媒体
面对这么多要做的事情，你可能会不知所措。有些人抱怨，早上一醒来，脑子就开始想着一天要做的事。然而时间飞逝，他们却进展缓慢，这又给他们带来压力。
除此之外，你忙于工作，以至于你没有时间进行创造性的pursuit（追求），比如写写文章、弹弹琴、学习成为茶师或者志愿者。似乎你从来没有足够的精力去做你梦寐以求的事情。
这听起来像你吗？不过你并不是一个人。今天我将和大家分享一个技巧，帮助你打破这种困境。
在我的文章《要事第一》中，我与你们分享了优先的原则，你们首先得区分什么是紧急的，什么是重要的，然后先做最重要的事情。
紧急的vs重要的
Urgent vs. Important
生活中有许多事情看起来很紧迫，但事实并非如此。例如：查看短信，赶DDL，以及回复各类消息，这些看起来都像很impending（紧急）的事，因为它们需要我们立即完成。但归根到底，这些任务对我们的长期目标往往没什么帮助。
此外，紧急的事情往往与他人有关，而无关我们自己。一个朋友发给你一篇微信推送，建议你“立刻”阅读它。你有一篇论文要交，但是由于procrastinate（拖延）或烦心事，你不得不在最后期限前赶工。如果你打开有数千好友的微信，刷朋友圈将会花费你更长的时间。
重要的事情往往不那么“显山露水”，但却关乎我们自己的目标和梦想。除非我们有很强的自我执行力，否则很容易忽视“重要的”而去做“紧急的”事情。例如，刷微信或微博要比找一个安静的地方写自己的故事容易得多。
紧急的和重要的事情并不冲突，一个好的计划能为两者都匀出时间。成功的人优先考虑做重要的任务，然后再做一些紧急的事情。
关键不在于优先把什么放进计划，而是计划好优先做什么。——史蒂芬·柯维
”制定你的每日计划
Your daily roadmap
每天早上，看一看你的待办事项清单，它可能是这样的：
1回复教授（或老板、客户）
2更新简历
3完成课堂（或工作）的阅读任务
4月底前撰写季度报告（或论文）
5进行五千米赛跑训练
写下要做的事的过程，被称为“理清思绪”，这有助于缓解压力。它把事情从你的脑中抽出来写在纸上，让你更精确地安排待办事项，并防止exaggerate（夸大）工作量。“理清思绪”可以立即缓解压力，使你抽身去思考其他事情。
现在，写下你的待办事项清单，花点时间用“I”（重要）或“U”（紧急）标记每项任务。它看起来可能是这样：
| To-Do List 待办事项 | |
|---|---|
| U | 1.回复教授（或老板或客户） |
| I | 2.更新简历 |
| U | 3.完成课堂（或作业）的阅读任务 |
| U | 4.月底前撰写季度报告（或论文） |
| I | 5.进行五千米赛跑训练 |
接下来，先处理“I”（重要）事项，即使只需几分钟，把“U”紧急事项留到稍后。紧急的事情总能在最后一刻之前做完，因为“ddl是第一生产力”。除非你面对着一个生死攸关的问题，否则它就不是一个真正“紧急”的事情，所以当你首先做重要的事情时，你可以忽略它们。这种方法可以确保你的重要事情不会被忽视。
正如我在关于《三体》的一文中写到，另一种确定什么是最重要的方法是问自己：“10年后，这还重要吗？”这有助于以更长远的perspective（眼光）看待你的现在。如果10年后这无关紧要，那么这是一个积极的信号，表明对于你来说，任务并不那么紧迫。
计划赶不上变化
Changes run faster
than plans
尽管你的计划是好的，但事情很少会按计划进行。例如，如果你打算写简历，但是刚坐下电脑就坏了，你需要找到一个解决方案。保持冷静，考虑多种方案，比如先用另一台电脑再去修自己的电脑，或者先修好电脑再坐下来完成简历。
或者，你可能想试试一个新品种的茶并写一篇文章。然而，一旦你开始泡茶，你就会有这种自我责备的感觉，觉得应该做一些更重要的事情，比如开始做作业。实际上，家庭作业是“紧急的”，你可以对自己说：“我会花一个半小时品茶和写博客。品茶使我宁静，这对写作业有好处。”
这样，在一天快结束的时候，你写完文章也做完了作业，这比做完作业但因为太“忙”而没来得及品茶感觉好多了。一天24小时，除去8小时睡眠时间，你还有16小时。做好时间管理，你能做你想做的一切。
排除不重要事情的干扰
Get it out of the way
管理时间是一项重要的技能。例如，如果你一醒来就看手机，就会反应迟钝。因为你放任信息、新闻和其他琐碎内容支配你的一天。我知道它让人上瘾，因为我们渴望感觉自己很重要，被需要，并且第一时间知道发生的一切，但是这些东西很少与我们重要的长期目标相关。
就我自己而言，每天早上我试着最先写作。查看邮件和社交媒体的冲动总是很难抗拒，但我告诉自己，“消息很紧急，但是写作更重要。”我知道我马上会去看电子邮件和微信，而当我这么做时，我会因为已经写了文章而少一些罪恶感。
继续把你的事情做好、坚持你的梦想，因为世界需要你那独一无二的天赋。——玛丽·弗里奥
”我的朋友，不要被太多的压力击垮。如果你按照这种方法先完成重要任务，然后处理你的紧急任务，你会发现自己有更多的时间来工作和学习，同时还可以做一些创造性的事情。尝试着这样做几天，欢迎与我分享你的感受，让我知道管不管用！
本文部分图片来源网络。
往期文章
谢谢收看《老桑说》。
给你启发，激励你上进，陪伴你坚持。
敬请期待下一集。
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English
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One Tip to Overcome
the Stress of Too Many Priorities
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「 Hello, my friend！
I'm John Smagula. 」
As you read this article, I’m sure you are thinking that you could be doing something else, like:
You may feel overwhelmed with all of these different priorities weighing down on you. Some people complain that as soon as they wake up in the morning, their head starts to spin as they think of everything they need to do that day. And then, as the day goes on, they often aren’t progressing as quickly as they’d like through their to-do list, which only adds to the stress.
And on top of that, you’re so busy with all this work that you don’t have time for creative pursuits, such as writing a story, playing a musical instrument, training to become a tea master, or volunteering. It seems like you never have enough energy to get to the things you dream about.
Does this sound like you? You’re not alone. And today I will share one tip with you to help you break this pattern.
In my article on Put First Things First, I shared with you the principle of priority, where you must know the difference between what is urgent and what is important—and then do what’s important first.
Urgent vs. Important
So many things in life seem urgent, but in fact are not. For example, checking text messages, completing tasks with impending deadlines, and staying current on social media all may seem urgent, as they demand our attention now. Yet in the end, these tasks do not always contribute to our long-term goals.
Also, urgent things often relate to other people’s goals, and not our own. A friend sends you a WeChat article, suggesting you read it “now.” You have a paper due, but since you procrastinated or became distracted, you have to cram to get it done by tomorrow. And then with your thousands of WeChat friends, it takes longer to check your Moments feed.
Priorities
Important things tend to be “quieter,” with no alarms or emotions, and often relate to our own goals and dreams. Unless we are strong self-starters, it’s easy to neglect what is “important” to do what is “urgent.” For example, it’s much easier to check your WeChat Moments or Weibo feed than to find a quiet place and write your story.
Urgent and important are not necessarily in conflict, as with proper planning, you can find time for both. Successful people prioritize, doing the important tasks first, and then saving what is urgent for a little bit later.
Urgent & Important
The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities. –Stephen Covey
”Your daily roadmap
Each morning, take a look at your to-do list, which may look like this:
1Respond to professor (or boss or client)
2Update resume
3Finish reading assignment for class (or work)
4Write quarterly report (or thesis) before end of month
5Run 5K to train for race
This process of writing down everything you need to do, known as a “mind dump,” helps relieve stress. It gets things out of your mind and down onto paper, allowing you to frame the issues more accurately—and preventing you from exaggerating what may be on your plate. The “mind dump” can be an immediate stress reducer, freeing your mind to think about other things.
To-Do List
Now, write down your to-do list and take a few moments to mark each task with either an “I” (important) or “U” (urgent). It may look something like this:
| To-Do List | |
|---|---|
| U | 1.Respond to professor (or boss or client) |
| I | 2.Update resume |
| U | 3.Finish reading assignment for class (or work) |
| U | 4.Write quarterly report (or thesis) before end of month |
| I | 5.Run 5K to train for race |
Next, work on the “I” items first, even if only for a few minutes, and save the “U” tasks until later. The urgent things will always get done because they have to. Unless you are dealing with a life or death situation, it’s probably not an “urgent” task, so you can ignore it while you first do the important things. This method ensures that your important tasks do not get neglected.
As I wrote in my post on The Three Body Problem, another way to determine what is important is to ask yourself, “10 years from now, will it still matter?” This helps place your life circumstances in a larger perspective. If it won’t matter 10 years from now, then that’s a good sign that the task is not that urgent for purposes of your current priorities.
Changes run faster
than plans
Despite your best intentions, your day will rarely go exactly as you plan. For example, if your task is to write your resume, but your computer malfunctions just as you sit down to write, you need to find a solution. Keep cool and think of options, like use another computer and then deal with the repair, or get your computer fixed and stay up an hour later to finish your resume.
Or, you may want to try a new tea and blog about it. Yet as soon as you start to brew, you get this nagging feeling that you should be doing something more “important,” like starting your homework. In reality, homework is “urgent,” and you can say to yourself, “I’ll brew and write for a half hour. I’ll then be in the ‘tea mind’ that will better prepare me to do my homework.”
To-Do List
And at the end of the day, with your blog post written and homework completed, you’ll feel much better than if you just did your homework and then neglected your tea work because you were too “busy.” With 24 hours in a day, allowing 8 hours for sleep, you still have 16 hours to do everything else. With proper time management, there’s time for everything.
Life is full of uncertainties. When changes run faster than plans, it’s important to adapt and stay focused on your larger goals.
”Get it out of the way
Guarding your time is an important skill. For example, if you check your cell phone as soon as you wake up, you’re being reactive. You let your messages, news feeds, and other content shape your day. I know it’s addicting, as we want to feel important, needed, and current with everything online, but this stuff is rarely related to our important, long-term goals.
In my case, I try to write first thing in the morning. It’s hard to fight the urge to check messages and social media in the morning, but at the same time, I say, “messages are urgent, but writing is important.” I know I’ll get to email and WeChat shortly, and when I do, I feel less “guilty” knowing that I got my blog writing done for the day.
Stay on your game, and keep going for your dreams. The world needs that special gift that only you have. --Marie Forleo
”My friend, don’t let the stress of too many priorities get you down. If you use this method of doing your important tasks first, and then tackling your urgent tasks, you’ll find there is plenty of time to get your work and study done while also engaging your productive and creative side. Give it a try for a few days, and leave me a comment letting me know how it goes!
{ 今日英文速记卡 }
1.Pursuit \ pər-ˈsüt \
a)含义：n. 追赶；工作
b)例句：
i.And on top of that, you’re so busy with work that you don’t have time for creative pursuits, such as writing a story, playing a musical instrument, training to become a tea master, or volunteering.
除此之外，你忙于工作，以至于你没有时间进行创造性的追求，比如写写文章、弹弹琴、学习成为茶师或者志愿者。
ii.She travelled the world in pursuit of her dreams.
她走遍天下，追寻她的梦想。
c)近义词： quest, search, seeking
2.Impending
\ im-ˈpen-diŋ \
a)含义： adj. 即将发生的；迫在眉睫的
b)例句：
i.So many things in life seem urgent, but in fact are not. For example, checking text messages, completing tasks with impending deadlines, and staying current on social media all may seem urgent, as they demand our attention now.
生活中有许多事情看起来很紧迫，但事实并非如此。例如：检查短信，赶ddl，以及刷朋友圈看起来都像很紧急的事，因为它们需要我们立即完成。
ii.On the morning of the expedition I woke up with a feeling of impending disaster.
出发远征的那个早上,我醒来就有一种灾难即将来临的感觉。
c)近义词： imminent, looming, threatening
3.Procrastinate
\prə-ˈkra-stə-ˌnāt \
a)含义：v. 拖延；耽搁
b)例句：
i.You have a paper due, but since you procrastinated or became distracted, you have to cram to get it done by tomorrow.
你有一篇论文要交，但是由于拖延症或烦心事，你不得不在最后期限前赶工。
ii.Most often we procrastinate when faced with something we do not want to do.
面对不想做的事情，我们经常拖延。
c)近义词： delay, put off, stall
4.Exaggerate
\ ig-ˈza-jə-ˌrāt \
a)含义：v. 夸张；扩大
b)例句：
i.It gets things out of your mind and down onto paper, allowing you to frame the issues more accurately—and preventing you from exaggerating what may be on your plate.
它把事情从你的脑中抽出来写在纸上，允许你更精确地安排待办事项，并防止夸大工作量。
ii.He tends to exaggerate the difficulties.
他往往夸大困难。
c)近义词： embellish, magnify, stretch
5.Perspective
\ pər-ˈspek-tiv \
a)含义：n. 观点；看法
b)例句：
i.This helps place your life circumstances in a larger perspective.
这有助于以更长远的眼光看待你的现在。
ii.Try to see the issue from a different perspective.
试以不同的角度看待这件事。
c)近义词：outlook, standpoint, viewpoint
Thank you for watching me to inspire, encourage, and accompany you.
See you next time.
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