Find the Best Number of Projects to Work on Simultaneously
I have too many projects. It’s true. I have so many projects on my projects list that I couldn’t possibly get them all done in the next few years. At age 21 or even 31 that wouldn’t have bothered me quite as much as it does now at 41. I hope to live a good long while, but even then, the number of years I have left to complete projects is finite and growing smaller with every passing year.
I’ve tried tackling just one project at a time and pouring all my energy into that one focused goal, but — though that sounds logical and efficient — it has never worked out very well. On the other extreme, having too many projects doesn’t work out either. A few projects get done, but there’s a lingering unpleasantness around all the projects that are laying fallow. So, somewhere between the two extremes is the best number of projects. I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know what that magic number (or more likely, the magic range of numbers), but I do know that I’m on the high side, and it’s not working well.
Today, on his blog Zen Habits, Leo has an excellent article on striking that elusive balance between too many and too few projects, based on his Haiku Productivity principles.
This application of Haiku Productivity may be one of the most useful and powerful (along with the two I mentioned above), transforming your ability to get projects done from one of juggling to one of focused completion.
How about you? Do you have too many projects? Too few? Or perhaps you’ve found the magic number of projects that works best for you. Feel free to leave a comment, and, as always, thanks for reading!
November 2nd, 2007 at 4:48 pm
“First, a few quick reasons not to multi-task:
Multi-tasking is less efficient, due to the need to switch gears for each new task, and the switch back again.
Multi-tasking is more complicated, and thus more prone to stress and errors.
Multi-tasking can be crazy, and in this already chaotic world, we need to reign in the terror and find a little oasis of sanity and calm. ”
From Zenhabits.net
http://zenhabits.net/2007/02/how-not-to-multitask-work-simpler-and/
November 2nd, 2007 at 6:53 pm
Ah, thanks for the comment. Actually though, Leo isn’t recommending multi-tasking in the article I linked to. He’s talking about how many projects you have on your project list, switching from one to the other — not working on tasks related to them simultaneously. So we’re all in agreement. Multi-tasking is best avoided.
November 12th, 2007 at 10:22 am
I love the topic. I can relate. I’m an “instructional design” consultant, which means that I design and develop workshops, training programs, presentations, e-learning courses, or any other service or product that involves teaching information or skills.
One design project is usually not enough for me but the five projects (and five clients) I have currently is a bit too much. The number of projects I can handle or tolerate, however, depends on the scope of the projects, whether or not I am already familiar with the content, and how involved I am in the hands-on work of the project. Two other factors that influence my “energy” to work on a project is how passionate I am about the topic (the more passionate, the more energy I have to work on it) and the nature of my relationship with the client (does the client actively and positively contribute to what I design or does the client like to tear it apart?). I’m painting a picture of extremes here, but only for the sake of brevity.
One way to handle MORE projects (and generate more income) is to outsource or sub-contract one or more of them. This is a great way to make semi-passive income, grow your business, and influence a lot of clients. Another way to handle multiple projects is to change the way you think about your projects. That is, do YOU have to do all of the hands-on work? Can the client do some of it or most of it and still get great results? Teach your clients how to do the work and charge a fee for teaching and supporting them. This may work for many of them.