The Highest Leverage Task to Achieve Goals

Moving from task to task, day after day gets exhausting. Cycling through tasks like this leaves little time for strategic thinking. It leaves no space to zoom out and look at the big picture. How do you know what the next right thing is?

Let me introduce you to the Weekly Review.

The Weekly Review is the time once a week to step back and assess. It provides clarity on the next actions. It gives purpose to this next task. It allows you to see how far you've come and ensures you are heading in the right direction. And it doesn't take much time.

The Weekly Review is the core component of the Getting Things Done (GTD) method created by David Allen. He breaks down his weekly review method into three discrete sections:

1. Get Clear: process inbox and braindump to do's.
2. Get Current: review tasks, projects, and calendar.
3. Get Creative: be creative & courageous.

Doing a Weekly Review seems like extra, unnecessary work. It is extra but it is necessary. You can spend 15 minutes or an hour. If you have more, do more. If you have less, do less. There is no perfect process for everyone so customize it to work for you.

Without the Weekly Review, you can feel a bit aimless. Not sure what to do next, what success looks like for this week, or if this task is moving the needle towards key goals. The Weekly Review changes all this.

"The Weekly Review will sharpen your intuitive focus on your important projects as you deal with the flood of new input and potential distractions coming at you the rest of the week." David Allen

The Weekly Review is checking your GPS to ensure you are staying on course to reach your destination. It is the highest leverage task to achieve your goals.