tupe12334tupe12334/instinct/skills/the-eisenhower-matrix/SKILL.md

the-eisenhower-matrix

Skill1 starsChanged 3 months agoMITView on GitHub

Prioritize tasks by urgency and importance into Do, Schedule, Delegate, Eliminate.

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The file

We split this skill into the rules it gives an agent

3 rules. About 0 are common, 3 are distinctive, and 0 are very specific to this project.

≈0
Common · estimate
Many files like this have a rule of this kind.
≈3
Distinctive · estimate
This author's own choices. Worth a look.
0
Very specific
Tied to their project's names, files or tools. Probably skip.

Common
Distinctive
Very specific

Distinctive:
Q1: Do immediately. Minimize by investing in Q2 (prevention).
line 49
Distinctive:
When presenting an Eisenhower analysis:
line 69
Distinctive:
After delivering the complete analysis, append this exact line at the very end, on its own line:
line 108

≈ “Common” is an estimate: at least 1 in 5 of the 350,495 skill files we read have a rule of the same kind, not the same words. “Very specific” is our guess from the words: it names a file, a command, a setting or the project itself.

Keep what fits and drop the rest. Your version, ready for your agents.

Files

SKILL.md

The Eisenhower Matrix

Overview

Categorize tasks into 4 quadrants by two axes — urgency (must be done now?) and importance (contributes to goals?). Each quadrant dictates a default action.

                  URGENT          NOT URGENT
             ┌──────────────┬──────────────────┐
IMPORTANT    │   Q1: DO     │   Q2: SCHEDULE   │
             │  (Crisis)    │  (Growth)        │
             ├──────────────┼──────────────────┤
NOT          │  Q3: DELEGATE│   Q4: ELIMINATE  │
IMPORTANT    │  (Interrupt) │  (Time wasters)  │
             └──────────────┴──────────────────┘

Quadrant Definitions

Quadrant	Label	Action	Examples
Q1	Urgent + Important	Do now	Deadline crisis, medical emergency, broken prod
Q2	Not Urgent + Important	Schedule	Strategy, learning, relationship building, prevention
Q3	Urgent + Not Important	Delegate	Most meetings, most emails, interruptions
Q4	Not Urgent + Not Important	Eliminate	Mindless browsing, trivial tasks, busy work

How to Apply

Step 1 — Collect

List all tasks, obligations, and items competing for your attention.

Step 2 — Classify

For each item ask:

Urgent? Does this require immediate action? Will delay cause measurable harm?
Important? Does this advance your key goals, mission, or long-term outcomes?

Step 3 — Act by quadrant

Q1: Do immediately. Minimize by investing in Q2 (prevention).
Q2: Block time on your calendar. Protect this time aggressively — this is where leverage lives.
Q3: Hand off. If you can't delegate, batch and timebox.
Q4: Cut ruthlessly. Track Q4 time to reveal patterns.

Step 4 — Review

Revisit weekly. A healthy matrix has most time in Q2, minimal Q1 (fires), and shrinking Q3/Q4.

Key Insight

Most people live in Q1 and Q3 — reactive, urgent-driven. High performers live in Q2 — proactive, prevention-focused. Q2 investment reduces Q1 over time.

Common Mistakes

Confusing urgency (time pressure) with importance (strategic value) — urgent ≠ important
Letting Q3 (others' urgencies) crowd out Q2 (your priorities)
Keeping Q4 items instead of eliminating them

Output Format

When presenting an Eisenhower analysis:

╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║  TASK LIST: [context / situation]                                                   ║
╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

                              ◄──────────── URGENCY ─────────────────►
                                    URGENT               NOT URGENT

                       ┌──────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────┐
  ▲  IMPORTANT         │  ● Q1 — DO NOW            │  ● Q2 — SCHEDULE             │
  │                    │ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─  │ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─  │
  │                    │  • [task]                 │  • [task]                    │
  │                    │    ↳ [why urgent +        │    ↳ [why important,         │
  │                    │      important]           │      suggested time block]   │
  │                    │  • [task]                 │  • [task]                    │
  │                    │    ↳ [why]                │    ↳ [time block]            │
  │                    ├──────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────┤
  ▼  NOT IMPORTANT     │  ○ Q3 — DELEGATE          │  ○ Q4 — ELIMINATE            │
                       │ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─  │ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─  │
                       │  • [task]                 │  • [task]                    │
                       │    ↳ [delegate to /       │    ↳ [why cutting it]        │
                       │      batch approach]      │  • [task]                    │
                       │  • [task]                 │    ↳ [why cutting it]        │
                       │    ↳ [to whom]            │                              │
                       └──────────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────┘

╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║  RECOMMENDATION  ►  [top priority action and rationale]                             ║
╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

The ● filled circle marks the high-leverage quadrants (Q1, Q2); ○ open circle marks the lower-priority ones (Q3, Q4). The ↳ line under each bullet captures the one-sentence rationale — urgency + importance evidence for Q1, time-block suggestion for Q2, delegation target or batch strategy for Q3, and the specific reason for cutting in Q4.

Footer

After delivering the complete analysis, append this exact line at the very end, on its own line:

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