# The CALM day algorithm: the matrix, the [2+1 rule](https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/glossary#rule-2plus1), Focus and [Bonus](https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/glossary#bonus)

> The day algorithm of the CALM method (Change · Area · Level · Mode) is four steps that turn a marked portfolio into a day you can close: filters decide which tasks are in play today, the matrix lays them out across six cells, and the 2+1 rule assembles the [Day Focus](https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/glossary#day-focus) — three tasks; the next three become the Bonus. Selection is a function of the marking, not of opinion: the same list gives the same day to anyone. Full version: https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/day · The method in full: https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm (text: https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm.md)

An English exposition of the day algorithm of the CALM method, created by Vasily Chernogorov. The primary source is the canon on heyjimmy.ai, in Russian: https://heyjimmy.ai/calm/canon — where the two appear to disagree, the canon prevails. Axis values — Grow, Stay, Work, Life, Key, Important, Regular, Do, Delegated, Waiting — are never translated.

## Step 1 — Filters: which tasks are in play today

A task is in play today when all of these hold: the move is yours (Do) · the assignee is you or nobody · the date is today or earlier · all four coordinates are set. Everything else stays out of the way:

| Task | Where it goes |
|---|---|
| Delegated — handed off | Control block: a separate list to hold people to, instead of a worry in your head |
| Waiting — waiting for someone else's move | Asleep under a staleness timer: if it stays silent too long, the method offers to send a nudge |
| No Level | [Freezer](https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/glossary#freezer): plays no part in selection or counters |
| The assignee is another person | Team contour: lives by the assignee field, not by the Mode axis |

## Step 2 — The day matrix: six cells

Everything that passed the filters is laid out across six cells: rows are Level, columns are Change. Cells are read by number, ① → ⑥; inside a cell, the task with the earlier date comes first.

```
                GROW           STAY
   KEY          cell ①         cell ②
   IMPORTANT    cell ③         cell ④
   REGULAR      cell ⑤         cell ⑥
```

## Step 3 — The Day Focus: the 2+1 rule

- **Two places** go to the first two tasks in reading order ① → ⑥.
- **One place** is reserved for the first task of the Grow column (cells ①, ③, ⑤ in that order).
- If that Grow task has already taken one of the first two places, the third place goes to the next task in reading order. If the whole day contains no Grow at all, the method offers the best Grow from the portfolio.

**Two tasks hold your today. One builds your tomorrow.**

**The Day Focus is three tasks. Success of the day = the Focus is closed.**

## Step 4 — The Bonus and an honest "not today"

The **Bonus** is the next three tasks in reading order. Everything below that is **"not today"**: it leaves your sight until the evening. It is not lost — at the evening Closing every one of those tasks is deliberately moved, frozen, or deleted.

**Success of the day = the Focus is closed. Bonus: made it, and that is good.**

**Zero overdue by morning.**

## The trust contract: your rights and transparency

- You may swap any one task in the Focus — the next task in reading order takes its place; the Focus never grows beyond three.
- Every decision cites the rule it came from: "the first task of the Grow column, by the 2+1 rule." The day is not random — it is assembled, and you can see why.
- Only your own moves enter the Focus and the Bonus. The method changes the composition of the Focus by itself only if something has ignited — explicitly and with an explanation.

**What you do not see is not burning; if it catches fire, the method will tell you.**

When the day breaks the rules — more than three Key tasks due today, a task moved for the second time, a new Key igniting midday — the safeguards switch on: Overload, Stuck, Ignited. They have a chapter of their own: https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/safeguards

## A worked example: ten tasks

A design studio owner's portfolio on a Tuesday morning. Ten tasks, already marked:

| # | Task | C | A | L | M | Date | Filters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sign the print shop contract — otherwise the run slips a month | Stay | Work | Key | Do | today | cell ② |
| 2 | Write the onboarding procedure for new hires | Grow | Work | Important | Do | yesterday | cell ③, first |
| 3 | Write a case-study article for the studio blog | Grow | Work | Important | Do | today | cell ③, second |
| 4 | Pay the office rent invoice | Stay | Work | Important | Do | today | cell ④ |
| 5 | Process mail and inbox | Stay | Work | Regular | Do | two days ago | cell ⑥, first |
| 6 | Renew the car insurance | Stay | Life | Regular | Do | yesterday | cell ⑥, second |
| 7 | Update the price list on the website | Stay | Work | Regular | Do | today | cell ⑥, third |
| 8 | Approve the layout — the designer is working on it | Stay | Work | Important | Delegated | Wednesday | → [control block](https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/glossary#control-block) |
| 9 | Account application — the bank is reviewing it | Stay | Work | Important | Waiting | — | → asleep under a timer |
| 10 | Idea: launch a layout course | — | — | no Level | — | — | → Freezer |

Seven tasks passed the filters. The day matrix — cells ① and ⑤ are empty, which is normal:

| | Grow | Stay |
|---|---|---|
| **Key** | ① empty | ② Print shop contract — Focus 1 |
| **Important** | ③ Onboarding procedure — Focus 2 · Case-study article — Focus 3 | ④ Office rent — Bonus |
| **Regular** | ⑤ empty | ⑥ Mail — Bonus · Insurance — Bonus · Price list — not today |

Why each place went the way it did:

1. **Place 1 — the print shop contract.** The first task in reading order ① → ⑥: cell ① is empty, so reading starts at ②.
2. **Place 2 — the onboarding procedure.** Second in reading order; inside cell ③ it comes first because of the earlier date (yesterday).
3. **Place 3 — the case-study article.** The 2+1 place belongs to the first task of the Grow column (① → ③ → ⑤), which is the onboarding procedure — but it already occupies place 2. So the third place goes to the next task in reading order: the case-study article.
4. **Bonus — rent, mail, insurance.** The next three in reading order: cell ④, then cell ⑥ by date — mail (two days ago), then insurance (yesterday).
5. **"Not today" — the price list.** Last in cell ⑥, with the latest date (today). It leaves the day and will not become overdue.

Day Focus: contract + procedure + article. The contract and the procedure hold today; the article builds tomorrow. Close the three, and the day is a success — whatever happens to the other seven.

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Previous chapter — the four axes: https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/axes (text: https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/axes.md)
Next chapter — safeguards: https://heyjimmy.ai/en/calm/safeguards
Product of the method: Jimmy — an AI assistant in Telegram (https://heyjimmy.ai/en) — walks through these four steps for you, on top of your own Todoist, and has your Focus ready every morning.