Answer Upon - Time Management: The Overlooked Outline

You were probably first taught about outlining in early school years when they told you how to create a story by listing three events within the body of the work and then developing those. In high school you might have had to turn in your outline prior to a term paper. Later you created a thesis. The function of the outline was to clarify your thoughts, review sequencing, and then add supporting details.

If you were lucky enough to have taken a speed-reading course, the same ideas were presented to glean the main ideas from the passages quickly. You would have learned to look at the subject, sub-titles, first sentence of each paragraph, and the conclusion.

Unfortunately, some of what you were taught has probably been put aside because you can wind up being too involved with the daily urgent details that bombard you constantly. You may find there is no longer any priority in a day as you simply go with the flow at that moment. Yet at then end of the week, you end up wondering what happened and what you actually achieved.

Skim through the following outline to see how quickly and easily you get the points versus having to read full paragraphs.

Effectiveness of Outlining

1. Early uses in school
   1. creating papers

   2. studying tables of contents

   3. skimming headings and subtitles

   4. setting up projects

1. Current-day problems
   1. overload
      1. excessive reading

      2. increased workdays

      3. too many commitments

   2. lack of focus
      1. constant interruptions

      2. no personal time

      3. multitasking requirements

   3. ineffectiveness
      1. no tie-in with goals

      2. urgent before important

   4. stress
      1. inability to do it all

      2. overlooked deadlines

      3. fear of missing something

      4. irritability

      5. illness

1. Solutions
   1. setting goals
      1. main goals

      2. sub- or short-term goals

      3. steps needed

1. prioritizing daily work
   1. top level--most important for work & growth
      1. steps listed

      2. times scheduled

   2. mid level--should get done

   3. low level--when you have a chance

1. finding life balance
   1. valued areas
      1. family

      2. community

      3. spiritual

      4. personal/health

   2. time
      1. scheduled blocks

      2. selected activities

1. Results
   1. satisfaction

   2. calmness

   3. business achievement

   4. personal growth

   5. enhanced relationships

1. Evaluation
   1. Able to skim through and get the points quickly?

   2. Recognize advantage of outline for your own events?

Unfortunately, some of what you were taught has probably been put aside because you can wind up being too involved with the daily urgent details that bombard you constantly. You may find there is no longer any priority in a day as you simply go with the flow at that moment. Yet at then end of the week, you end up wondering what happened and what you actually achieved.

Skim through the following outline to see how quickly and easily you get the points versus having to read full paragraphs.

Effectiveness of Outlining

1. Early uses in school
   1. creating papers

   2. studying tables of contents

   3. skimming headings and subtitles

   4. setting up projects

1. Current-day problems
   1. overload
      1. excessive reading

      2. increased workdays

      3. too many commitments

   2. lack of focus
      1. constant interruptions

      2. no personal time

      3. multitasking requirements

   3. ineffectiveness
      1. no tie-in with goals

      2. urgent before important

   4. stress
      1. inability to do it all

      2. overlooked deadlines

      3. fear of missing something

      4. irritability

      5. illness

1. Solutions
   1. setting goals
      1. main goals

      2. sub- or short-term goals

      3. steps needed

1. prioritizing daily work
   1. top level--most important for work & growth
      1. steps listed

      2. times scheduled

   2. mid level--should get done

   3. low level--when you have a chance

1. finding life balance
   1. valued areas
      1. family

      2. community

      3. spiritual

      4. personal/health

   2. time
      1. scheduled blocks

      2. selected activities

1. Results
   1. satisfaction

   2. calmness

   3. business achievement

   4. personal growth

   5. enhanced relationships

1. Evaluation
   1. Able to skim through and get the points quickly?

   2. Recognize advantage of outline for your own events?

1. creating papers

2. studying tables of contents

3. skimming headings and subtitles

4. setting up projects

1. Current-day problems
   1. overload
      1. excessive reading

      2. increased workdays

      3. too many commitments

   2. lack of focus
      1. constant interruptions

      2. no personal time

      3. multitasking requirements

   3. ineffectiveness
      1. no tie-in with goals

      2. urgent before important

   4. stress
      1. inability to do it all

      2. overlooked deadlines

      3. fear of missing something

      4. irritability

      5. illness

1. Solutions
   1. setting goals
      1. main goals

      2. sub- or short-term goals

      3. steps needed

1. prioritizing daily work
   1. top level--most important for work & growth
      1. steps listed

      2. times scheduled

   2. mid level--should get done

   3. low level--when you have a chance

1. finding life balance
   1. valued areas
      1. family

      2. community

      3. spiritual

      4. personal/health

   2. time
      1. scheduled blocks

      2. selected activities

1. Results
   1. satisfaction

   2. calmness

   3. business achievement

   4. personal growth

   5. enhanced relationships

1. Evaluation
   1. Able to skim through and get the points quickly?

   2. Recognize advantage of outline for your own events?

1. Solutions
   1. setting goals
      1. main goals

      2. sub- or short-term goals

      3. steps needed

1. prioritizing daily work
   1. top level--most important for work & growth
      1. steps listed

      2. times scheduled

   2. mid level--should get done

   3. low level--when you have a chance

1. finding life balance
   1. valued areas
      1. family

      2. community

      3. spiritual

      4. personal/health

   2. time
      1. scheduled blocks

      2. selected activities

1. Results
   1. satisfaction

   2. calmness

   3. business achievement

   4. personal growth

   5. enhanced relationships

1. Evaluation
   1. Able to skim through and get the points quickly?

   2. Recognize advantage of outline for your own events?

1. valued areas
   1. family

   2. community

   3. spiritual

   4. personal/health

2. time
   1. scheduled blocks

   2. selected activities

1. Results
   1. satisfaction

   2. calmness

   3. business achievement

   4. personal growth

   5. enhanced relationships

1. Evaluation
   1. Able to skim through and get the points quickly?

   2. Recognize advantage of outline for your own events?

Since your life’s pace often provides you with no more than a couple of minutes to linger on a subject, outlining is a good technique to add to your arsenal of tools for coping with the speed in modern day living. Practice creating outlines as you plan projects and events, starting with your long-term goals and then working down to daily routines.

©2006, Key Organization Systems, Inc.

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