Although “a place for everything and everything in its place” is a well known saying, the temporal analog is probably just as powerful of an organizational idea (although not really a common saying).
In particular, I’ve found that whenever I want to make sure some project is accomplished (using the “bit by bit does the trick” strategy), I am most likely to succeed if I first assign a set time of day (or, for larger projects, a set day of the week) to do the next “bit.”
By way of example, I typically do a 20-30 minute piano practice session each weeknight, a 60-90 minute session first thing Saturday morning and 30-45 minutes on Sunday afternoon, which together let me make fairly consistent progress on the pieces I’m working on.
Moreover, I’ve found that shortly after I set such a schedule, it doesn’t take long before I automatically start feeling “mentally ready” when the appointed time comes each day or week.
One Idea 