How to manage tasks with clarity

Your inbox pings, Slack lights up, and the campaign brief that will actually move pipeline hides in a forgotten tab. I spent years trapped in that loop until I realised that using email and chat as a task board keeps you reactive rather than productive. The shift came when I parked every to-do in one hub and let messages return to what they do best communication, not project management.

I run my board in Notion and link it to Notion Calendar, so every card I drag into “Scheduled” becomes a visible time block. If you prefer ClickUp, Asana, or a simple text file, the principle is identical: one place for tasks, one place for messages, one place for time. Once each commitment sits on the diary the day stops feeling like firefighting and starts behaving like a roadmap.

Capture every commitment in a single tasks list, except email itself. Actions lifted from messages, Slack pings, or meeting notes go to the list; the original messages stay where they arrived. This separation keeps your inbox tidy and your task hub reliable.

With Notion the capture step is a slash command or forwarding an email to a unique address. Dragging a card into “Scheduled” plots it on a secondary calendar that colleagues cannot see, yet you can toggle on and off. The same flow works in other tools; choose whatever you will actually open daily.

Review the funnel each Friday. Mute newsletters, automated alerts, or noisy channels that add little value. The aim is completeness without clutter, giving you one dependable queue and zero mental tabs.

Every morning scan the list and pick three priority tasks. Each must fit inside one ninety-minute window. If a task is larger writing an entire guide, for instance define the progress you will achieve in that single block, such as drafting the outline or polishing one section.

Label supporting items as Should or Could. Should tasks matter but can wait; Could tasks are optional. The tags make trade-offs explicit when fresh work appears and stop you over-committing out of habit. Stakeholders see the queue and understand the logic instead of guessing your capacity.

Record your choices in task comments so the reasoning stays visible. Transparent triage builds trust because people read priorities, not silence.

I work in three focus blocks: the first ninety minutes, a slot before lunch, and another mid-afternoon. Must 1, Must 2, and Must 3 each occupy one of those blocks. Each calendar event carries the task name, status Busy, and all notifications off. I treat the slot like a client call; nobody expects instant replies and I stay offline long enough to finish.

When the timer ends the deliverable ships or the next concrete step is captured. Throughput becomes measurable and you quickly learn whether ninety minutes is the right size. If your energy peaks differ or shorter sprints suit your context, adjust the length and observe; the experiment is the point.

Because the tasks feed the calendar directly, progress updates itself no copy-paste, no second-guessing where the work has gone.

Reactive work still exists; it just gets corralling. I reserve a single thirty-minute admin slot at 16:00 to clear email, approve creatives, and hand off tickets. New adopters often add a second slot mid-morning until their queue shrinks. Consistency teaches colleagues when responses land and stops them interrupting focus blocks.

Apply the same discipline to meeting fallout. If the weekly marketing sync is at 11:00, the diary already holds a processing block at 11:30. Capturing next steps while the discussion is fresh prevents task leakage and stops another meeting from stealing the space.

Review these support windows on Fridays. If they overflow, enlarge them or push low-value tasks off the board, but never steal minutes from the three core focus slots; that is how the system stays honest.

Separate tasks from messages, select three high-impact moves each morning, and protect them with ninety-minute focus blocks. Add fixed admin windows so reactive work lands in predictable slots instead of hijacking strategy. This cadence accelerated my growth career by surfacing what matters and sidelining everything else.

Pilot the framework for one week. Populate the board on Monday, triage three priorities each morning, and honour the boxes in your diary. By Friday you will not have perfection, but you will have proof that a calmer, more deliberate workflow is within reach.

If you are ready, open your tool of choice, build the capture lane, and book tomorrow’s first ninety-minute block. The experiment starts now.

What is task management and why is it important?

At its core, task management is about staying in control of your work. It’s the process of organising, prioritising, and tracking all the things you need to do whether they’re big projects, recurring responsibilities, or small one-off tasks.

Without a system for managing tasks, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed or let important work slip through the cracks. This is especially true in high-pressure roles like marketing or growth, where priorities shift quickly, and there’s always more to do than time to do it.

Good task management gives you clarity. It ensures that you’re always focusing on the right things, working efficiently, and making meaningful progress toward your goals. It’s not just about productivity it’s about reducing stress, improving decision-making, and freeing up mental energy for creative or strategic work.

The foundations of effective task management

If you’re just starting out, it’s important to build a system that works for you. Here are the principles behind good task management:

1. Capture everything. Your mind isn’t built to remember dozens of tasks at once. Write down every task, idea, or responsibility somewhere safe whether that’s a notebook, spreadsheet, or task management app.
2. Prioritise effectively. Use frameworks like the Eisenhower Matrix to determine which tasks are most urgent and important. Avoid the trap of doing busywork instead of impactful work.
3. Plan regularly. Task management isn’t a one-and-done activity. Incorporate daily, weekly, and quarterly reviews into your routine to stay aligned with your goals.
4. Adapt as needed. No system is perfect from the start. Test what works for you, refine it over time, and don’t be afraid to experiment with new tools or techniques.

Popular task management frameworks

Here are a few frameworks that can help you get started:

• Eisenhower Matrix: Sort tasks into four quadrants: urgent/important, not urgent/important, urgent/not important, and not urgent/not important. Focus on what’s important first.
• Getting Things Done (GTD): A five-step process: capture, clarify, organise, reflect, and engage. Perfect for those who like structured systems.
• Time Blocking: Schedule tasks directly into your calendar, assigning blocks of time to specific activities. Helps you stay focused and avoid multitasking.

Tools for task management

Whether you’re a pen-and-paper person or a digital enthusiast, the right tools can make task management easier. Here are a few options:

• ClickUp: A versatile tool for managing everything from daily tasks to big projects.
• Notion: Ideal if you want to combine task management with note-taking and other features.
• Todoist: A simple yet powerful tool for tracking and prioritising tasks.

Why task management matters for growth professionals

Growth roles are unique because they require you to juggle short-term execution with long-term strategy. Without a strong task management system, it’s easy to get bogged down in day-to-day firefighting and lose sight of bigger goals.

By mastering task management, you’ll be able to:

• Free up mental space for creative problem-solving.
• Ensure your most impactful work gets done.
• Build trust and credibility with your team by staying organised and reliable.

Start today

The best time to build your task management system is now. Whether you’re just getting started or looking to optimise your current workflow, this guide will help you take control of your tasks and unlock your full potential.

For a deeper dive, explore the chapters on doing a brain dump, prioritisation, building a task management system, and creating powerful task habits. Your productivity journey starts here.