What factors do you consider when deciding what to work on next? [closed]

Question

Lately I've been feeling like I'm being pulled in different directions. In my company there are a lot of forces demanding my time and I'm having a hard time deciding which direction to focus my energies.

I have the choice of several different coding projects, some of which could demand a lot more work over time, and present unknown challenges.

How do you decide what to work on next in the big picture? Grease the squeakier wheels? Low hanging fruit? (translation: easier projects)

Do you have a system for determining and reaching your goals?

Answer 1

We've used a value graph to identify projects based on value vs. effort, as a part of lean.

Answer 2

A few of the things I ask that affect what I work on :

Are any of my tasks holding up other developers or keeping other people from being able to do their work? If so, it'll probably get done first.

Do I have any tasks with deadlines coming up? If so, it might be the next candidate to work on, unless I can justify something else being worth the task slipping schedule.

Will work on any of the tasks affect (make obsolete / make easier / make more difficult) any of the other tasks I have? If so, it might get moved up.

Is there a good chance that any of the tasks will change (requirements still not concrete / other tasks out there that might affect it), making time spent on it now likely wasted? If so, it gets moved down.

Are there any things that just really bug me, that I think I can get done before anyone notices that I'm not working on whatever my boss thinks is the highest priority. (which is justified because it'll distract me from thinking about the other things).

Are there any tasks I should work on while things are still fresh in my mind?

... other than that, we go with a combination of whatever sort of fixed deadlines I have, what tasks I have that might be holding up other people, what the boss wants first (I like this boss, and I only have one giving me tasks ... in the past, I'd've answered differently), which ones seem more interesting, which ones I can get done quickly to just get them off the list, etc.

There have been times when I've had more than one manager, and I just had to put everything on a list on a whiteboard, and told them to number them (17 items, which kept growing). Management balked, but I was sick of getting bitched out at meetings week after week with stuff not being done, and having to go through the list of every 'emergency' task I was given. (and being told that any manager in the department was allowed to task me in the case of an emergency ... which was something like 30 people ... and being bitched at when I asked who got to decide if it was an emergency or not.)