Getting things doneΒΆ
I'm using David Allen's "getting things done" method for my personal organisation and planning. I found some good quotes in an article over on 43 folders
I'm better off to develop a healthy, organic process that blends with the actual life I'm leading (as opposed to the happy lakeside of my mental watercolors). I need a practical, real-life system that squares against my personal and professional priorities but is also all about actually doing things that I've committed to do. It may seem like a distinction without a difference, but I think it's pretty powerful stuff: get a system that fits into your real life; manage your details with gusto; review regularly; and constantly refactor against a realistic plan for successive life steps.
On some other systems which are much more top-down (1-4 priorities, Mission Statements, Personal Goals, etc):
I think some of these systems promote Capital Letter Nouns a lot more effectively than the hard-working lower-case verb. And verbs are really what your life is made of, isn't it?
"Clean the floor" is much better than the Grand Vision for the Ultimate House Cleanness.