Two-Minute Rule

A simple time management technique whereby if something can be done quickly, in less than 2-minutes then do it now. In practice it might also be considered a 5-minute rule, or a very short time rule, because it will take most people a couple of minutes to think about this and make an initial move to doing it, unless they are right there at the opportune moment for doing it.

A few examples might be putting together a to-do-list, produce a short meetings schedule, or quick tidy of a desk or workbench. Doing some of these in 2-minutes might be a bit challenging, especially if a little considered thought is needed, so a little longer might be more appropriate.

The emphasis though, should be to get those little, easily accomplished, minor (sometimes irritating) tasks done as you see them or need them and not to put them off for another time or day. These can then all build up into a range of little tasks that need a large chunk of time to get them sorted. So, keep the two-minute rule to mind during the day, so when a break from a longer activity is occurring, maybe that might be the time to also get one of those little, quick tasks out of the way as well.