I can agree with Markovitz's point that todo lists are not the best productivity boosters available, but I don't really agree with his conclusion that putting everything in your calendar is an improvement.
Some points:
1. A todo list is better than nothing. It may not make you a productivity god, but it will keep you conscious of what you have to do for the given period (day, week, month, whatever).
2. Your calendar likely isn't set up to function as comprehensive task-management software. I use outlook at my office, and sure it has some task-list features, but they're woefully lacking in features. I posit that doing your todo list in outlook is of no benefit over doing your todo list in notepad. To use the language of the article, there's still the problems of "heterogeneous complexity", "lack of context", and no "commitment device". Sure it gives you a better idea of priority (e.g. my calendar says I have to do this right now) and how much time a task MIGHT take, but I can ignore outlook popups just as easily as I can my notepad todo list. And trust me, I have.
Using a calendar to schedule your work doesn't solve the underlying problems that cause most people's productivity to suffer: motivation and distraction. If my motivation to complete a task is low, having it on a todo list vs a calendar (or even in comprehensive task-management software) makes no difference--I still don't want to do it, and I can and will still be distracted by crises, email, and the internet in general.
Some points:
1. A todo list is better than nothing. It may not make you a productivity god, but it will keep you conscious of what you have to do for the given period (day, week, month, whatever).
2. Your calendar likely isn't set up to function as comprehensive task-management software. I use outlook at my office, and sure it has some task-list features, but they're woefully lacking in features. I posit that doing your todo list in outlook is of no benefit over doing your todo list in notepad. To use the language of the article, there's still the problems of "heterogeneous complexity", "lack of context", and no "commitment device". Sure it gives you a better idea of priority (e.g. my calendar says I have to do this right now) and how much time a task MIGHT take, but I can ignore outlook popups just as easily as I can my notepad todo list. And trust me, I have.
Using a calendar to schedule your work doesn't solve the underlying problems that cause most people's productivity to suffer: motivation and distraction. If my motivation to complete a task is low, having it on a todo list vs a calendar (or even in comprehensive task-management software) makes no difference--I still don't want to do it, and I can and will still be distracted by crises, email, and the internet in general.