how to keep your creative workflow simple

pick the work before fixing the system

what do you want to finish? a draft, a design, a recording, a project proposal?

name the next action that moves it forward. “organise content” could mean almost anything. “write the opening paragraph” tells you what to do when you sit down.

try doing that action with the tools you already have. notice where you get stuck. that's more useful than guessing every feature a future workflow might need.

if the problem is that you haven't decided what to say, another database won't make the decision for you.

give tasks one home

choose one place to keep what you need to do. paper works. an app works. choose something you can find and use easily.

write tasks as actions. “record a first take” is easier to start than “camera confidence”.

pick a short list for the day based on the time you actually have. my original letter suggested three to five tasks. treat that as a limit to try, not a rule that every day must look the same.

if creative work is the priority, give it a deliberate place on the list. don't leave it as the reward you might reach after all the admin.

give appointments and working time one home

use a calendar for things that need to happen at a particular time.

include meetings, deadlines, and the working sessions you want to protect. looking organised in a task list isn't the same as having time available to do the work.

make the session realistic. if you have half an hour, choose an action that fits. if the day changes, move the session rather than pretending the original plan still applies.

a useful calendar helps you see the tradeoffs. it doesn't need to make every minute look busy.

give ideas one easy place to land

choose a place where you can capture an idea quickly. the useful part is being able to find it again, not building a perfect category for it.

write enough context to recognise the thought later. a sentence explaining what interested you is often more useful than a link with no note.

keep ideas separate from commitments. a possible video topic doesn't need to become a task until you've decided to make it.

review the notes when you have time to choose the next piece of work. pick something to act on rather than repeatedly tidying the same collection.

change less than you think you need to

you don't need to delete your whole workspace to simplify it.

try using one task list, one calendar, and one capture place for a week. keep existing project information and records somewhere safe. leave shared systems alone unless the people using them agree to a change.

move only what's needed for the work in front of you. a huge migration can become the next version of the same avoidance.

if one app already handles all three jobs clearly, you don't need three separate apps. the point is understanding where each thing goes.

check whether you're making more easily

at the end of the trial, ask:

• could I find the next action?
• did I have time to do it?
• could I capture an idea without interrupting everything?
• what did I actually finish?
• which part still got in the way?

make one useful adjustment. don't rebuild the whole thing because one task slipped.

a simple workflow is allowed to look boring. the interesting thing should be what you make with it.