Indent or predecessor - best practice for dependency

treeski3

I've just started using smartsheet for personal use in planning a basement remodel project, most of which I'm doing myself. My goal is to have a sheet that provides enough step by step task detail so I know what my next doable actions are for each #area (a la GTD). For example, I currently can finalize some design aspects (#design, @office/online), finish insulating the basement walls (#walls, @home), or pickup mastic and insulation to start sealing the ductwork (#ceiling, @errands).

I find that I am making multiple levels of sub-task indents for each area as I plan out the project. For example, in #walls I have multiple subtasks for finishing the insulation, then multiple subtasks for finishing the drywall, then multiple subtasks for painting, trim, etc., all of which are dependent on the completion of the previous tasks. In other areas, I have tasks with subtasks that can be done simultaneously and are not dependent on each other.

I imagine that most don't use the multi-indent hierarchy for project management but I find it much quicker for planning out the whole project than assigning predecessors. Also, I am not concerned with duration or start/stop dates as I just fit the work in during free-time on nights and weekends.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to approach this or perhaps can direct me to a post or other resource on best practices for project planning and task hierarchy? Thanks!

Paul Newcome

A combination of hierarchy and dependencies/predecessors would be the best practice for this style of project management.