based on a quote attributed to a former US president Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Eisenhower matrix is a rather simple way to determine the importance of given tasks at hand, typically presented as a grid with four quadrants and two axes guiding urgency and importance.
the quadrants can be roughly described as such task groups:
- do [high importance/high urgency] - tasks that require your immediate attention and skillset, typically deadline-bound and/or essential to progress
- delegate [low importance/high urgency] - tasks that have to be addressed quickly, but don’t require a particular skillset and can be delegated to someone else
- schedule [high importance/low urgency] - tasks with unclear deadlines that may not be a main goal, but are still worth it in the long run
- delete [low importance/low urgency] - tasks that potentially hold no value and should be considered for evaluation or outright ditching
above is a matrix i bodged from a template for draw.io i found online. this is entirely independent of software, however, as you can doodle this in pretty much anywhere, whether it is a diagram software, a piece of paper, or ms paint.