2024-01-06

Hybrid Productivity System

Hybrid Productivity system is a technique that combines the benefits of digital and pen and paper tools to create a more effective and efficient time and task management system.

Digital

To create a digital to-do list with a spreadsheet, you can use LibreOffice. LibreOffice Calc allow you to create a table with columns for tasks, due dates, and other relevant information. You can also customize the table with conditional formatting, formulas, and other features to make it easier to manage your tasks. For example, you can use conditional formatting to highlight tasks that are overdue or add formulas to calculate the total time required for all tasks.

An example of such spreadsheet can be requested using this webform, remember to indicate that you would like a copy of the Hybrid Productivity System LibreOffice spreadsheet.

This example shows a table with columns for tasks, start dates, end dates, notes, and week numbers. The week number for the start of a task is shown in a separate split window, this will allow you to keep the week number visible while horizontally scrolling through the rest of the table.

The ISO 8601 week number has been calculated with the following formula:

           =IF(F2 ="" ,"",WEEKNUM(F2, 21))

The function WEEKNUM calculates the calendar week corresponding to a given date.

The formula:

   =IF(ISBLANK(F2),"",WORKDAY.INTL(F2, H2,$Validation.I5,$Calendar.B6:$Calendar.B25))

uses the WORKDAY.INTL function to calculate the end of a task that is a specified number of working days (excluding weekends and holidays) after the start date.

This function takes the following arguments:

  1. The date to start counting from (F2).
  2. The number of working days to add (H2).
  3. A number that specifies which days of the week are considered weekends, located in the sheet Validation.
  4. An optional range of cells that contains dates to exclude as holidays, defined in the sheet Calendar.

Filters are also included into the columns headers' to sort and organize tasks.

Weekly Planner Notebook

This spreadsheet can be used together with a weekly planner notebook that support the ISO 8601 week calendar, as shown in the figure below.

The Diff column indicates the number of notebook pages you need to flip through from the start of a task to find its end date. Meanwhile, the END WEEKDAY column displays the day of the week on which the task ends.

By using a paper planner notebook, it's also possible to add stickers, washi tape, or even attach a full year calendar to make your planner more fun and personalized.