Project Planning · 7 min read
A Beginner's Guide to Personal Kanban
Kanban isn't just for engineering teams. Here's the smallest version that helps an individual.
By The PlannerDock team · Updated June 30, 2026
Two rules, that's it
- Visualize your work: put every task on a card in a column.
- Limit work in progress: only allow a few cards in the 'doing' column at once.
A starter board
Three columns are enough to begin: To Do, Doing, Done. Move a card left to right as it progresses. The satisfaction of dragging something into Done is a feature, not a gimmick.
When to add columns
Add a column only when a real stage exists that cards genuinely wait in — say 'Waiting on someone else'. Columns that don't reflect a real state just add friction.
Try this with