In one of our recent Boot Camp classes, April shared some ideas on how she organizes for routines in Asana. Watch the video below to see how April creates and keeps an up-to-date routines list that helps you manage your repeating tasks and projects without stress!
Action Steps:
Your goal is to create a master list that you can review during each Weekly Review.
1. Create a digital or paper chart with these categories:
- Daily
- Weekly
- Monthly
- Quarterly
- Twice a year
- Yearly
In Asana, this list would be set up under one base “project.”
2. Brainstorm as many of the following as you can in 10 minutes:
- Meetings
- Tasks
- Reports
- Networking activities
- Education
- Phone calls
3. Streamline your routines – delegate, delete and defer where possible.
4. Commit to reviewing your routines each week.
Related Resources
Do you have friends or family that could use better system to manage their routines? Click here to share this video with them on Facebook!
And if you would like to learn more about how routines fit into the bigger STEP System, we would love to have you join our free class!
If this isn’t the right time for you – that’s okay! We have a couple other great free resources for you:
In this post, Jill shared how she uses Asana, and in this podcast, April gives some more details about how she set up Asana to manage her projects & routines.
What tips or tools have helped you manage your routines? Share in the comments below!
Hi April, thanks for the video. I love Asana and plan on setting up my routines / recurring tasks on Asana as you’ve suggested. Just wondering… Do you mark the tasks in your Routines project as complete, or is it just a list for you to refer to? Thanks!
Hi Natalie! Great question- April keeps a list of her routines to refer to visually. In Asana you are able set the tasks as recurring if you’d like but it can feel overwhelming to open the program and see so many things to do. I hope this helps!
Thanks Taryn. I agree that setting the tasks as recurring will be overwhelming. Thanks for the tip. Cheers~
How do the routines then go from the routine list to being assigned a date/time/whatever on the calendar or weekly schedule? Am I missing a step?
Hi Susan! Routines are generally done by habit as part of your day. If they’re not happening yet, then you’ll want to schedule them until they do become habit. April keeps a list of her routines to refer to visually but they’re not scheduled on the calendar. Feel free to send a message to [email protected] if you have any other questions or want more clarification. We’re happy to help!
I know I have a learning disorder and need to reread this material before I can respond to it.
Hi, Mary Ann. Take your time as you read through the material. We will be here to support you when you are ready to move forward. Thank you for taking time to comment here. Have a great day!
Just confirming: What April calls a project, Asan Calls a Task, yes?
Hi Amy! Great question…you can create both projects and tasks in Asana. It all depends on how you create it and how you choose to view the list. We have another great video training that might be helpful to you as well. You can find that here: https://learndobecome.com/video-optimizing-asana-using-boards-to-manage-projects/. If you have further questions, feel free to contact us at [email protected], and we will respond as quickly as possible. Thanks for being part of our community!
In brainstorming the routines, am I looking at everything I do on a regular basis in all aspects of my life? Or would I have separate routines lists for my personal routines, running my family and household, and work?
Similarly, are there 3 Strategic Objectives for the whole year across all life roles (personal, family, work), or three objectives for each of those?
Trying to figure out how broad the scope is as I brainstorm and set up these routines lists. Thanks!
Mary, these are great questions! You will want to include all aspects of your life. You could have separate lists if that makes more sense to you. We recently shared a post on one way that this can be done. You can find it here: https://learndobecome.com/episode48/. As for the 3 Strategic Objectives, April’s are just for work and she has yearly goals for her personal and family life. You could definitely create 3 personal strategic objectives as well!
This program looks great! Do you use Asana premium? Is there a way to access the basic Asana program for free long-term, like Evernote? I have only found a free 30 day trial of Asana. Maybe I’m not looking in the correct spot. Also, can you interchange use of Asana on both your desktop and cell phone with one acct?
Thank you!
Hi, Janice! Thanks for your question. We use the free version of Asana even for our team. It’s a great program! It is accessible from both your smartphone and your desktop with the same account. The free 30 day trial is for the premium level. We use the basic level, which is free, and it covers all of our needs. When you go to https://asana.com/, click on “pricing” then “get started” under the basic column. Enter your information in the popup and you’re on your way! Wishing you all the best!!
I’m excited to try Asana out!