Five Tips to Break Big Tasks Into Smaller Ones — 205iDeas
I was able to establish that we often get intimidated by big tasks which rob us of the desire to get projects like that done in time. the last post In the previous post, you will see that the best way to tackle big tasks is to break them down into smaller and more manageable chunks, then plan how and when to complete the smaller tasks.
I will now share with you 5 tips that you can employ to help you break down those big tasks into smaller tips.
It is very true that the task of getting a large goal divided into very small and achievable bits is not very easy and most of the time it proves to be something quite hard to do.
What is so difficult about breaking up big tasks?
Well, the problem here is mainly that you have to have a lot of vision if you want to turn a very difficult goal to achieve into tons of tiny little goals, often the task of dividing a large task into smaller ones is a big task itself and it lends itself to procrastination. When you are not planning your long term goals because you feel that that part is also very hard to do — a big task in itself — then you are likely not going to do it due to time or other types of constraints.
So how can you divide large tasks into easier ones so that the mere task of dividing does not turn into a marathon on its own?
One of the things that have been discovered is that saying “having my own business” and then attempting to plan every small task that will take you from zero to business owner is a very big task on its own. You will definitely find out that there are many variables that you don’t know yet that could affect your planning and that building thousands of easy steps to get there is quite an Olympic task.
So instead of trying to plan everything from the start just figure out what the first obvious step actually is. What is the first thing you need to achieve to actually get that goal? For example, if you want to have a homebased business the first milestone achievement would be to find a business idea you like and do a budget and marketing research around it. When you reach that point, you will think about the next.
Now that you know that you want to go from milestone to milestone instead of planning a 10-year drive you can start to divide each medium-term goal into smaller goals which now is a very easy thing to do. In the above homebased business example this would mean that you would break your first goal into smaller ones like: research business ideas > compare business ideas with skills > do a budget for each good looking business idea > calculate the income potential for each one > find potential customer base > have business idea, budget and marketing research done. As you see, milestone achievements are easily broken into a subset of manageable tasks.
If you are procrastinating on any of the “small tasks” it means that the task is not small enough now to stimulate you to actually get it done. One of the foremost reasons why people procrastinate is because tasks look too unmanageable so don’t be afraid to look back at the plan and change your scheme to make tasks even smaller. Some people do well with a list like the above while some end up with much more “digested” tasks that are far easier to achieve. It is a matter of knowing yourself and the task size you are able to achieve without feeling overwhelmed.
For some people, it becomes impossible to get things done unless there is some type of pressure to get them done. The easiest way in which you can apply some pressure to you to get your tasks and planning done is to set deadlines for things to happen. For example, plan to reach a new milestone achievement every month and plan to have your milestone goal plus the smaller tasks ready by the third day of every new month. Doing this allows you to have a plan in perspective and to do your goal and project development once each month.
As you see, these small tips make the breakup of tasks and project development a lot easier than what it usually is. You will find that out that when you apply the above knowledge your tasks will be more manageable and you will be reaching your milestone goals frequently and more easily, this, in turn, will make you more satisfied with your progress and you will have a greater chance to achieve your goals and avoid procrastination.
However, if things don’t go as you plan — do not panic — remember that you can always go back to your plan and recut or edit your tasks and milestone goals so that they match your realtime project development and whatever problems or difficulties you may find along the way.
You can also check out the updated business tips page for amazing business tips and if you are also thinking of starting a business you can check out the business ideas page for business ideas in agriculture, trading and so on.
Cheers
Originally published at https://205ideas.com.
