E Matrix Pro
Transform chaos into clarity: The task manager that thinks like you do, not like a robot.
I love productivity, but sometimes a to-do list app or system can introduce more chaos in your life than simplicity. This is where I began to develop the E-Matrix Task Manager. I wanted a productivity tool that helped me focus on what’s important, what’s urgent, and what isn't.
The Eisenhower Matrix has always been a concept that I have loved, but the challenge with the way that it is designed is that it is great for a team leader who can delegate tasks out to other team members but isn't so great for day-to-day task management.
Here is where I changed the system. I made it work on an individual level for day-to-day task management. So what did I do?
I created four areas like that of the Eisenhower Matrix, and each of these areas is defined by how important and how urgent each task is.
🔥 Do Now —is a task that is both important and urgent. This means that it is something that you should focus on first and not stop till it is done. Don’t get distracted by anything else.
⏭️ Do Next —is a task that is not important but is urgent, like sending the minutes from a meeting you had that day, or a booking that needs to be made for next week. They are urgent, but they shouldn't be the focus of your day.
⏳ Do Later —these are the tasks that are important but don't have an urgency. Although they could become urgent if they aren't dealt with soon! Once everything urgent is completed, this is a great place to spend time, on tasks and projects that are coming up and likely need a bunch of time allocated to them. The best place to live is here, before it becomes urgent.
🌿 Do Whenever —here is the last list, items that are both unimportant and have no urgency. They are often things like groceries, shopping, errands, ideas, movies to watch, books to read, and other random tasks that need to be recorded but aren't of importance right now (although easy to add a higher importance to it later).
And then there are Life Areas, and this is where this task manager takes you to the next level!
In my opinion, not only does every task need an importance and urgency assigned to it, there also needs to be an area of life! This means that when you are working on an area of your life, you don't get distracted by another —maybe between 9-5 is for your work, then before or after might be time to dive into the personal space and get some things done.
Within each of these areas, you then have easy access to all your tasks via the Eisenhower Matrix as well as tasks that have a date and every "Do Whenever" task as well (see below).
As you can see, it doesn't stop there! Rather than just a tick-box task, I created a "Waiting" process for those tasks that often need someone else to be involved before they can happen. This means that it can stay in your task manager until it is done but doesn't get in the way of every other task (genius, I think).
That then takes me to the list on the right of the dashboard, a quick view to see what tasks are due today, tomorrow, or over the next week.
This will give you information such as the importance of the task, and is a quick way to see what needs to be done every day —maybe it was a task you just needed a reminder about or a project you are in the middle of —this list makes sure you stay on top of everything that has a due date!
OK, then let me finish with the most important part, inputting and sorting tasks.
This is the quick capture area which lets you input tasks quickly without having to then navigate urgency, importance, or a date —this will do it all for you thanks to each button for adding a new task (if you have read this far, did you think it could get any better?).
And then here is the power of the inbox! It tells you what it needs to be done for it to then be moved out of the inbox! I'm yet to see an inbox like this from a Notion creator 🤔.
I hope by now you are convinced this is the template for you. If not, then you should at least give me a follow on Threads or Substack for getting this far!