Chances are, you have more than one thing going on in your life right now. This is where Priority Matrix’s Master Task List (or as some call it, a master to-do list) comes in handy.
Whether it’s several work projects, helping out a family member, or tending to your own house, you have multiple things to do that don’t necessarily relate to each other. If you want to get things done, you have to be able to handle multiple priorities.
In this article, we’ll explain how to create a master task list that:
- Includes tasks from multiple projects, while staying easy to understand
- Helps you focus on TOP priority items across ALL projects
- Ensures you don’t “drop the ball” on any important tasks
- Can be shared with colleagues (if you want!)
Using a master task list allows you to see tasks from all of your projects in one view.
You can even sort this list by:
- Project, Priority Level, Due Date, Team Member
Keep scrolling to learn how!
First Things First
There are a number of tools out that claim to help you manage your to-do list. Some of them even let you break that list down into projects.
However, none of them handle multiple priorities quite like Priority Matrix. In short, Priority Matrix is a prioritization and delegation tool that helps individuals and teams do high-impact work.
Let’s delve deeper.
Interested already? Get started by signing up here:
How Does It Work?
When you use Priority Matrix, you can make a separate projects for each of the major things you have to do. Just like when you were a kid, you probably had an easier time in school if you had a different notebook or binder for every subject, instead of sticking everything in your backpack and hoping you could find your homework later.
The same logic applies here:
By using multiple projects instead of just sticking everything you need to do in one list, you can more easily reference the different aspects of a project that still need to be completed and all of the information related to it. You’ll cut down on time spent looking for information or references, and you can see what things you’ve already done.
Check out how Priority Matrix can show you finished vs. unfinished tasks:
It’s beneficial for you to split up your work into different projects. However, it’s still nice to be able to see all of your to-do’s and due dates in one place. By having a place where everything you need to do is written down, you can plan for your day based on urgency and importance of your various tasks. This is especially important if you want to manage your time well.
The great thing about Priority Matrix is that if you’ve already made your task lists in different projects, it will automatically collect all of the tasks and put them in one place.
This is called the Master Task List, and it was made for the specific purpose of making your life easier.
Build your own MASTER task list. Sign up here:
Your Master To-Do List: How to Use the Master Task List
Today, I’m going to show you how to use Priority Matrix’s Master List and how it organizes your tasks and helps you prioritize.
For Example:
Let’s say you’ve got three major projects going on in your life:
- A website redesign for your business
- An upcoming family reunion you need to plan, and
- The release of a new product
1. Create Your Projects
These are all time-consuming projects that can’t be completed in one step. To start things off, make sure you create three separate projects for each of these undertakings. Break everything up into concrete, easy-to-understand tasks.
If anything has a deadline, make sure to include that in the task’s date.
Now that you have organized to-do lists for each of your projects, you can easily check each one and reference any information or files you’ve put there.
2. Aggregate Data in One Place
While these individual projects are great, you’ll want to be able to see everything at once when you’re planning a schedule for the day or checking on due dates for upcoming tasks.
This is where the Master Task List comes in. Here’s what the Master Task List looks like for the situation I previously described
View Items by Project
The Master Task List is currently set to “All”, so it shows all of your tasks, organized into sections by the project they each belong to.
If you look at the top right, where it says “By project”, you can change it to organize the list in a different way.
View Items by Priority Level
The quadrants in Priority Matrix represent the priority level of each task:
- The highest priority tasks (critical and urgent) are under Q1.
- Second-highest priority tasks fall under Q2, and so-forth.
This next image shows the Master Task List being organized by quadrant, regardless of the project it belongs to. This organization is good if you want to tackle your list based on priority of task, and get your most important work out of the way first.
Zoom in Further
If you don’t want to see the whole list at once, you can also choose to view things that only match certain criteria.. By clicking one of the buttons at the top, you can limit what shows up on the list.
The following image shows you what it looks like if you only show high priority items:
Organize by Date
You can also show things that are due within a certain date, like the week or day. Keep in mind that you can still organize the list based on quadrant and project within these shorter lists.
Organize by Team Member
One last thing to note about the Master Task List is that it shows an icon next to each task for whoever it’s delegated to. This is great if you’re working in a team.
It helps clarify who’s in charge of what, and you can see from a glance if a lot of work is piling up for a specific person. You can also intervene and see if they need help, or redistribute tasks as required.
Now that you have an understanding of how the the Master Task List works, you can see everything you have to do all at once!
You no longer have to worry about missing anything.
Benefits of a Master Task List
When you start by organizing projects, prioritizing, then finally, building a master task list, you’ll find that your “master list” helps you work more effectively. Rather than a long to-do list that includes everything under the sun, your master task list in Priority Matrix will be a focused list that helps you accomplish your goals and drive results.
Try Priority Matrix now, FREE, by entering your email in the box below.
You’ve got nothing to lose!
