Working in Metryon
Metryon is built around a simple habit: collect first, decide deliberately, then work from a clear list.
Ideas behind the approach
The way of working borrows from both Getting Things Done and Kanban, without requiring you to follow either method in full.
From GTD comes the habit of capturing incoming work before deciding what it means. The Inbox gives new information a temporary home; processing it turns that information into a clear next action, useful reference, or no action at all.
From Kanban comes the emphasis on visible flow. Tasks move through a small number of states, and the In progress list stays short enough to show where your attention really is.
Metryon adds goals, integrations, and optional agent execution around those ideas. The method remains lightweight: make conscious commitments, keep active work visible, and finish before taking on too much more.
Start with the Inbox
The Inbox brings together work that has arrived since you last looked. It may contain a pull request waiting for review, a Jira issue, or something you captured yourself.
Treat it as a place for decisions, not as another backlog. Open each item, read enough to understand it, and choose what it means for you.
An item usually needs one of three responses:
- No work needed. Mark it as read and move on.
- Worth doing later. Turn it into a task in Todo.
- Ready now. Start the work and move the task into In progress.
The source item stays connected, so the task keeps its original context without becoming a second copy of it.
Add a goal when it helps
Connect a task to a goal when the larger outcome changes how you would approach it. A goal is useful when several tasks contribute to the same result, or when you want a clear reason for doing the work.
Do not create a goal only to satisfy the structure. A small fix or routine review can stand on its own.
Choose what to do
Once the Inbox is clear, work from Tasks rather than repeatedly scanning every source system.
Use priority to decide what deserves attention. Use state to show what is happening:
- Todo is accepted work that has not started.
- In progress is work receiving active attention.
- Done means the intended outcome has been reached.
Keeping the active list short makes it easier to see when work has stalled. If you are no longer working on something, move it back to Todo instead of leaving it in progress by habit.
Do the work in the right mode
Some tasks are best handled by hand. Others benefit from AI assistance or an agent run. Choose the mode that fits the work rather than treating automation as the default.
When an agent is involved, the task still carries the purpose and context. The run is part of its execution history, not a separate stream of work you need to reconcile later.
Actions that change an external system may pause for approval. Approval means the action is allowed to run; completion is recorded only after its result is known.
Finish with intent
Before marking a task done, check the outcome rather than the activity. A review is done when the review has been submitted, not when an editor was opened. A fix is done when the expected change is in place, not when an agent stops running.
If the result of an external action is unclear, Metryon keeps the task and action visible for recovery. It does not quietly assume success or repeat the action.
A useful daily rhythm
A typical day in Metryon can stay small:
- Clear new decisions from the Inbox.
- Review Todo and choose what matters now.
- Keep only current work In progress.
- Work manually or with assistance as needed.
- Mark outcomes done and leave useful context in notes.
The point is not to maintain a perfect system. It is to know what has arrived, what you have committed to, and what deserves your attention next.
See Examples for this approach applied to pull request reviews, bugs, features, documentation, and Jira stories.