Urgent and important
Do
Anything with a real deadline and real consequences: a client crisis, a file due tonight. You handle it yourself, today.
- The quote promised for 2 pm
- The server that just went down
- The tax filing due tomorrow
Free tool
Online Eisenhower Matrix
Sort your tasks into four boxes: do, schedule, delegate, delete. Free, no sign-up, done in five minutes.
My Eisenhower matrix
Urgent
Not urgent
Important
Do
0Urgent · Important — Today, yourself.
Schedule
0Not urgent · Important — Block time for it in your calendar.
Not important
Delegate
0Urgent · Not important — Hand it off, or reply in two lines.
Delete
0Not urgent · Not important — Let it go, guilt-free.
Made on virtuslever.com/tools/eisenhower-matrix
Your tasks stay in your browser: nothing is sent to our servers.
The blank PDF template, ready to print
One A4 page with the four boxes and the two questions, plus a one-page reminder of the method. For those who prefer paper, or to pin up at your desk.
What is the Eisenhower matrix?
The Eisenhower matrix is a prioritization method built on two questions: is it urgent? and is it important? That gives four boxes, and each one tells you what to do with the task. It is named after Dwight D. Eisenhower, who said: “What is important is seldom urgent, and what is urgent is seldom important.”
Why it works fits in one idea: urgency is loud, importance is quiet. Without a grid, you spend the day answering whatever rings. With one, you finally see what truly deserves your time.
The 4 boxes, with examples
Important, not urgent
Schedule
What builds your results but never asks for attention: strategy, learning, health, relationships. It is the most valuable quadrant and the most neglected. Block time for it.
- Prepare next year's budget
- Train a colleague
- Exercise three times a week
Urgent, not important
Delegate
What is pressing, but for someone else: many emails, calls and meetings. Hand it off, automate it, or reply in two lines.
- A routine information request
- Booking the meeting room
- An internal survey
Neither urgent nor important
Delete
What keeps you busy without giving anything back. Delete it, unsubscribe, say no. That is not laziness: it is time returned to the Schedule box.
- Newsletters you never read
- Endless social scrolling
- Meetings with no agenda
Fill in your matrix in 5 steps
- 1
Empty your head. Write down everything on your mind: tasks, emails waiting for a reply, promises you made. No sorting yet.
- 2
Ask two questions. For each line: is it urgent (a real deadline coming up)? Is it important (does it move one of your goals forward)?
- 3
Put it in the right box. Yes-yes: Do. No-yes: Schedule. Yes-no: Delegate. No-no: Delete.
- 4
Work box by box. Do the red quadrant, put the green one in your calendar, send off the orange one, clear the grey one.
- 5
Start again every morning. Five minutes is enough. A matrix goes stale fast: yesterday's emergencies are not today's.
Mistakes to avoid
- Putting everything in Do. If more than three or four tasks land there, you are mixing up urgent and merely loud.
- Leaving Schedule without dates. An important task with no time slot always ends up urgent.
- Treating other people's urgency as yours. An email marked URGENT is often urgent for the sender, not for you.
- Never deleting anything. The grey box is there to be emptied.
Going further: how to deal with email overload and the domino method.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Eisenhower matrix?
It is a four-box grid that sorts every task with two questions: is it urgent, and is it important? Each box calls for an action: do, schedule, delegate or delete. It is attributed to US President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Stephen Covey made it popular in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
What is the difference between urgent and important?
Urgent means there is a deadline close by: if you wait, it is too late. Important means it matters for your goals, your work or your life. A task can be urgent without being important (most interruptions), or important without being urgent (preparing for the future).
How do I fill in an Eisenhower matrix?
List your tasks, ask the two questions about each one and put it in its box. With the tool above, you type the task, say whether it is urgent and important, and it files itself. You can move it afterwards and tick off what is done.
Where can I get a blank Eisenhower matrix PDF?
The blank A4 PDF template is a free download on this page. You can also fill in the matrix online and save it as a PDF with the Print / save as PDF button.
Are my tasks sent anywhere?
No. The online tool keeps your tasks in your browser only. Nothing is sent to our servers.
Can I use the Eisenhower matrix for email?
Yes, and that is often where it saves the most time. Every email is a small decision: do, schedule, delegate or delete. Virtus Lever reads your inbox, suggests the tasks hidden in your emails and files them into the matrix; you confirm with one tap.