Introduction
After reading Sprint and Make Time by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky, I tried some methods and tactics from both books. I had the idea of combining principles from both frameworks the get the most out of it for personal use. I call this strategy the „Personal Sprint“.
How it works
The method can be applied to different time settings: 1 day, 1 week or few days. You choose what fits best for you and the framework will support you to get the things done that matter to you.
It is key to plan you Personal Sprint ahead. Follow the principle „Planning Mode vs. Robot Mode“.
If you apply the method to the setting of one week, set aside about one hour and block it in your calendar.
In case you want to apply the method on one whole day, split the day in four blocks. Each block should be one hour long.
For each day or work block you will choose one Highlight (see Make Time). While you are working on your Highlight, all distractions should be avoided. This includes you phone, social media and the internet in general (if not needed for achieving your Highlight). You have to be in Laser Mode (see Make Time). To be even more productive, I recommend the Pomodoro technique: 25 minutes of focused work followed by 5 minutes of break. Do this twice per work block.
Setting goals
You don’t want to end up with a long to do list. Try to set SMART goals:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Relevant
- Time bound
You can define one goal for the week or the day and break or up into four Highlights of which one will be achieved per work block. Stay realistic and don’t overwhelm yourself.
Reflect and adjust
After conducting you first Personal Sprint it is useful to reflect the process so that you can adjust it accordingly. Think of the following for example: How was your concentration? How well did it fit into my day? Do I have to adjust the time for my Highlight? Keep what worked well and adjust and experiment with the things that didn’t.