Abstract
Most to-do lists mix two kinds of pressure: things that are due soon and things that would make a real difference. If you only sort by deadline, the second kind keeps getting pushed to next week.
The matrix asks the two questions separately, which gives you four groups. Do the urgent and important things now. Schedule the important ones that can wait. Hand off the urgent ones that don't need you, and drop the rest.
Method
- 01
Write everything down
Put everything on one list, including the half-formed ideas. Sort it later.
- 02
Ask if it's important
Would it move a goal you care about, or would something break without it? If not, it isn't important, however loudly someone is asking.
- 03
Ask if it's urgent
Does it need doing in the next day or two, with real consequences if it waits?
- 04
Place each task
Urgent and important: do it. Important but not urgent: schedule it. Urgent but not important: delegate it. Neither: drop it.
- 05
Act on each group
Do the first group today and put the second in your calendar. Hand off the third and let the fourth go.
When to use it
- Your list is longer than your day and everything feels equally pressing.
- You're busy all week and the important projects still aren't moving.
- You're planning the week and want to protect time for focused work.
Common pitfalls
- Calling everything important. If most of your list ends up in the first box, be stricter.
- Neglecting the schedule box. Important work without a time slot turns into next month's emergency.
- Treating someone else's urgency as your priority.
- Delegating without context, which turns one task into two.
Origin and references
Attributed to Dwight D. Eisenhower, popularised by Stephen Covey (1954).
- Eisenhower, D. D. (1954). Address at the Second Assembly of the World Council of Churches, Evanston, Illinois.
- Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Free Press.