nice read. I started planning my work a bit better a few months ago and it sure improves your skills, be it quality wise or how long it takes. planning ahead, tracking your progress, reward schemes may sound a bit over the top, but it definitely helps.
david seah's got load of paper based plans/forms online at
http://wiki.davidseah.com/public:art...1#productivity, those are quite nice, especially if you just need some idea where to get started... and talon, no laughing. :P