Personal Worklog
Years ago, I was stuggling to meet all of the committments I had made. When discussing this with my manager, he suggested keeping a log of what I did each day for a couple of weeks to identify items that I could eliminate or postpone (or now that I manage others – delegate). The exercise was useful and got me through the commitments. I then promptly forgot about it. Some time later, I was in a similar situation and started to keep the log. This time, I made it into a habit. Since then, I have kept a simple work log at my last 3 companies.
It is a simple format:
Date * Description of what I did
Date * Description of what I did
Date * Description of what I did
No more than a line for each item. (The details can always be found in my engineering notebooks, wiki entries, source code control comments, bug reports, etc.) At the end of each week, I archive that week’s log and start a new one. I review the prior weeks log when I file my weekly status report. At longer intervals, I will review larger blocks of time.
The work log has helped me numerous times. It is especially useful when I need to answer questions like “when did we do A, B and C?”
I am currently in the process of moving out of my current position. One of the first things I did was review my work logs for the last 12 months and identify
What types of items should my replacement do? What should be delegated to existing team members? What items do I need to discuss with my boss about who should take on these duties?
Without these logs, I am sure I would let something slip through the cracks. This is definitely a habit that has been useful and that I will continue.