Work Log

A notebook in which you keep track of your work as it unfolds can be helpful for several reasons. It can provide a sense of continuity. It can provide data about how you work best and what obstacles inhibit productivity. Use it to log your routine weekly planning, your long term planning, and your daily work sessions. For a sample, see Work Log Sample.

Daily Review:

Each day you sit down for a work session, put an entry in your work log. You might look over your next action or other lists for this stage of your project. At the beginning of the session ask, What do I want to accomplish today? At the end, ask, What have I done? What do I need to do? At the end, ask yourself What did I accomplish today? What have I done? What do I need to do next.?

Weekly Review:

Each week, set aside one day to reviewe your lists, updated your calendar and decided what you’ll be working on and when. The entry needn’t be extensive, but you might report the following:

• • What tasks did you complete from the last week?

  • Which tasks carry over?

  • What obstacles were there, if any?

  • How did you feel about your previous week’s work?

• What are your plans for the upcoming week?

• Have there been any changes to the long term calendar?

• Have soft and hard deadlines changed?