Eisenhower matrix is just a thinking tool. But sometimes seeing where our time goes laid out visually is what we need to shift priorities. What's one important-but-not-urgent task that you keep postponing?

Important-but-not-urgent tasks compound over time. Writing that documentation, learning that new skill, updating your portfolio... Tasks like these always feel optional but when you get them done consistently, they make huge impact.

The shift comes by following a simple rule: Schedule important-but-not-urgent tasks first thing in the morning. Before Slack, meetings and others' priorities take over.

Too many tasks go in the "Urgent but not important" quadrant: Slack replies. Last-minute presentation prep. Other people's emergencies. Leaving you with little time for the truly important things. The matrix only makes this visible, it won't fix it for you.

The Eisenhower Matrix is one of those tools that seems too simple to work. But tracking where tasks actually end up over time reveals interesting patterns. Here's what typically happens:

🙅 Instead of writing: 'I've analysed our quarterly metrics and after reviewing multiple data points...' ✅ Use BLUF: 'We should increase our marketing budget by 20%. Here's why: customer acquisition costs dropped 15% last quarter, and our conversions are at an all-time high.'

Writing to a busy audience? You need to capture their attention quickly, not bury the lead. → Use BLUF: Bottom line up front. Lead with the key takeaway, then back it up with more details and arguments. This will sharpen your communication.

Don't judge the quality your decisions just by their outcomes.

Don't judge the quality your decisions just by their outcomes.

Being aware of common cognitive biases is a good start but not enough to counter them. I dive deeper into counter-strategies for each bias in this month's premium post in Untools Vault: https://t.co/OAkduNZONt (also gets you access to all Untools templates and past deep dives)

9. Status quo bias Preference for things to stay the same by doing nothing or sticking to previous decisions. Why it matters: This bias can prevent adapting to evolving markets or adopting new/better tools or processes.

8. Sunk cost fallacy: Continuing with something because of previously invested resources, even when doing so isn’t the best course of action. Why it matters: This can result in wasting resources on projects that are failing and missing better opportunities.

7. Loss aversion: Preference for avoiding losses over acquiring equivalent gains. Why it matters: Creates resistance to change and keeps people and teams from making risky decisions, potentially limiting innovation.

6. Framing effect: Decisions are affected by how the same information is presented to us. Why it matters: The way you present things influences the responses you get. Especially in presentations and proposals – the same idea can succeed or fail based just on how it's framed.

5. Availability heuristic: Considering the likelihood of events based on how easily examples come to mind. Why it matters: Recent, dramatic or personal experience events seem more probable than they actually are. This can lead to poor risk assessment and resource allocation.

4. Anchoring effect: Influence of reference points (anchors) on our decisions and judgements. Why it matters: Initial information can heavily skew subsequent judgements and play an important role in negotiations, budgeting and performance evaluations.

3. Planning fallacy: Underestimating the time, costs and risks of future actions while overestimating their benefits Why it matters: This bias routinely causes project delays, overdrawn budgets and resource conflicts.

2. Overconfidence bias: Being too confident in our judgements and beliefs, overestimating our own abilities and putting them above others'. Why it matters: Creates blind spots and leads to poor decisions since we don't seek enough input from others and ignore warning signs.

Our brains use mental shortcuts to process information quickly but can also mislead us. Let's look at 9 common biases you should be aware of. 1. Confirmation bias: Tendency to selectively pay attention to information or interpret it in a way that confirms our existing beliefs.

These free tools will make you a better product manager in 2024. 📌Use @UntoolsHQ for problem-solving, decision-making, and understanding systems.