What's your go-to method for prioritizing tasks and managing competing deadlines within a project? Share one technique that has proven successful for you.

Question

Effective task prioritization and deadline management are crucial skills in today's fast-paced project environments. This article presents practical strategies, backed by expert insights, to help you master these essential project management techniques. From visual management tools to proven prioritization methods, discover how to optimize your workflow and meet deadlines with confidence.

Dylan Young · Answer

We use Trello. It's a simple, visual project management tool that uses boards to help teams organize tasks, set priorities, and track progress. The drag-and-drop feature makes it easy to manage workflows, and it's great for collaboration, especially when you have a team working on different aspects of a campaign. Plus, it integrates with tools like Google Drive and Slack, so you can keep everything in one place. It's a user-friendly choice to stay organized and on track.

Felicity Goldsack · Answer

As a Project Management Training Consultant at Parallel Project Training here in the UK, one technique I always return to when it comes to prioritising tasks and managing competing deadlines is the MoSCoW method. It's simple, effective, and easy for teams to understand at all levels.
If you haven't heard of it, MoSCoW stands for: Must have, Should have, Could have, and Won't have (for now). When a project starts to feel overloaded, or deadlines start clashing, this method quickly cuts through the noise. It helps teams agree on what truly matters and what can wait, based on value, urgency, and risk.
What makes it work so well is that it brings focus without needing complex tools or endless meetings. Everyone sees the same priorities in black and white, which keeps the team aligned and reduces stress.
If you're leading a team juggling multiple demands, I highly recommend giving MoSCoW a try. Sometimes the most effective tools are the ones that bring clarity, not complexity.

Joe Reale · Answer

I always keep a note of what to watch next, but I don't try to make a list of favorites all at once. I focus on just the things that need to move forward each day. Having success involves asking yourself: "If I'm only able to finish one thing, which one should it be?" That keeps me from spending most of my time on less important things.
I schedule each task on my calendar, not only meetings, but also during actual working hours. If there's nothing in the calendar, things rarely take place. Sometimes, I look at who needs what from me if things seem urgent. Meeting deadlines is required, but the correct sequence is just as important. The focus isn't solely on speed—it should be on getting important work done sooner.

Ryan McDonald · Answer

One of the key methods I rely on for prioritizing tasks and managing competing deadlines is building in buffer time. As the COO of Resell Calendar, I've found this to be an essential strategy for keeping projects on track and delivering successful outcomes, even when unexpected challenges arise.
I learned the importance of proactively planning for the unexpected. I was managing a major website overhaul for our e-commerce platform, with a tight timeline to get it live before our busiest sales season. I had carefully mapped out all the tasks and deliverables, factoring in what I thought were reasonable timelines. However, about halfway through the project, we encountered some complex integration issues that ended up taking much longer to resolve than anticipated.
Rather than letting this setback derail the project, I was able to draw on the extra buffer time I had built into the timeline. This cushion gave me the flexibility to absorb the delay without missing our target launch date. As a result, we were able to execute the website rollout smoothly and ensure our important marketing campaigns could proceed as planned.
Now, whenever I'm planning out a new initiative, I make sure to include additional breathing room beyond what the individual tasks would suggest. I typically add an extra 15-20% of the total timeline as a buffer. This proactive approach gives me the confidence that we can weather any unexpected challenges that may arise, without compromising the overall project timeline.
Having that buffer has been invaluable. It allows me to stay calm and adjust on the fly when obstacles pop up, without the stress and disruption of missed deadlines. The peace of mind it provides is truly priceless, and it's definitely one of the top strategies I recommend to anyone juggling multiple priorities and timelines.
Of course, it's a balance - you don't want to overcompensate and end up with an inflated timeline. But in my experience, that extra bit of cushion is well worth it to ensure we deliver successful projects for our Resell Calendar community.

Vrutika Patel · Answer

In our seafood business, we developed the "Freshness Clock" method for project management after a particularly chaotic product launch. Just as our fish has a ticking clock for optimal freshness, we now assign every task a "freshness deadline" - the point after which its value diminishes significantly. Our marketing team rolled this out during our recent mobile app launch. Instead of treating all tasks equally, we mapped each component on a quadrant: high impact/perishable (customer ordering features), high impact/stable (brand elements), low impact/perishable (launch promotions), and low impact/stable (background features).
The results were remarkable: project completion time dropped by 34%, and team stress levels decreased by 41% according to our internal surveys. Most importantly, customer adoption of the app rose 52% compared to previous digital launches. The simplest business truth we've learned: not everything is equally urgent. By asking "What loses value fastest if delayed?" we cut through competing priorities. Just like we ensure fresh seafood reaches customers before its prime passes, we now deliver our most time-sensitive project elements first.

Joaquin Calvo · Answer

My preferred technique is focusing on the project's critical path—the series of essential tasks directly affecting completion timelines. By clearly identifying and concentrating resources on these priority tasks, we ensure timely project delivery without getting bogged down by less impactful activities.

Juan Hassun · Answer

When you have been in business for as long as I have, you need to learn to juggle tasks. I find myself using Kanban boards more and more and utilizing the tools that come with my Office 365 package, like Planner. It really helps keep the team organized, and if you don't need all the bloat of a full project management software, Planner will do just fine. It's sure a lot better than the previous method of just having a desk covered in sticky notes. With Planner, you can also assign tasks to your team and include them in your Teams chat room.

Steven Macdonald · Answer

I might be biased, given that I'm the founder of an OKR platform, but my go-to method for prioritizing tasks and managing competing deadlines is using OKRs (Objectives and Key Results).
OKRs aren't a task list - they're a focus framework. They help me step back and ask, "What's actually going to move the needle?" 
From there, it's easier to triage tasks: if something doesn't drive a Key Result, it's delayed, delegated, or dropped. 
This keeps our team aligned, reduces busywork, and makes prioritization way less stressful - especially when deadlines clash.

How to Prioritize Tasks & Manage Deadlines in Projects

Table of Contents

How to Prioritize Tasks & Manage Deadlines in Projects

Utilize Trello for Visual Project Management

Apply MoSCoW Method to Prioritize Tasks

Focus on Daily Priorities and Calendar Scheduling

Build Buffer Time into Project Timelines

Implement Freshness Clock for Task Urgency

Concentrate on Project’s Critical Path Tasks

Leverage Kanban Boards and Office 365 Planner

Use OKRs to Focus on Impactful Tasks

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