Time Blocking vs Task Blocking

life Mar 28, 2020
Remember that if you are at home with kids, and you are trying to maintain some sort of sanity with kids, you may need to switch from time-blocking to task-blocking.
 
It's all well and good that you create a schedule but here's the thing about those littles, they do not give a rip about snack time at 2pm if their bellies are rumbling for goldfish at 1:20.
 
Time-Blocking is organizing your life based on specific times in the day. This is useful when you are coordinating schedules. Dentist Appointments. School pick-ups and drop-offs. Booking your clients etc.
 
Task-Blocking is breaking your must-get-dones into tasks that can be done in chunks of time. Think of it like a to-do list that you can cross off. {Maybe there's no way in tarnation you are getting a 45 minute workout in with your kids, but there might be a few 15 minute chunks you can start and stop an exercise video.} Your goal becomes simply to cross the things off the list but who cares if teeth get brushed right when they wake up and right before bed...maybe the goal becomes "as long as they are brushing 2-3 times a day and no one dies, we are good."
 
Task blocking takes all the pressure off a household that isn't ready to time-block. This also works well if you have kids that struggle with executive functioning.
 
Many of my clients are finding this shift is bringing more peace into the home, and if you have elementary or middle-schoolers, giving them a list they need to cross of each day can give them some autonomy and some confidence. Things like:
 
-make my bed
-do my google classroom
-brush my teeth in the morning
-brush my teeth after lunch sometime
-brush my teeth before bed
-walk around the pond outside while keeping distant
-facetime grandma and grandpa
 
(work together to see what makes sense and get buy-in from the kids.)
Then you have a task-blocking list each day too, and they can CLEARLY see how much you've gotten done or haven't. :0) It can help them understand that everyone is busy doing important things, even if it looks like they aren't.
 
Of course, doing all the things together is important too, but that requires "time-blocking" to coordinate, so work those puzzles and board games and crafts around CONSISTENT meal times, or have a set time each day that you are CONSISTENT with for these activities, and you can slowly work at getting the things done that feel urgent, while you spend time with the people that are most important.
 

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