My husband makes To-Do lists with estimates of how long things will take. Since he kept a time log in the beginning, he has records of how long things actually took, and now he has a good sense for how much time to allot. He assigns each task a number to indicate how important and urgent each task is and uses that ranking system to decide what to work on first (or next). During working hours that aren't scheduled with something specific, he starts at the beginning of the list and works his way through the day's tasks until the next meeting/appointment/whatever.
I suggest that you continue making your schedule, but with a "rule" change or two:
You read the 70-minute chapter until you're done, even if it means you have to take a break in the middle. When finished, read the 30-minute chapter. After that, begin Task #3, even if it's not "scheduled" for another 20 minutes.
Alternate: You stop reading the 70-minute chapter at the end of 60 minutes. When you finish the 30-minute chapter, you can either go back and finish the 70-minute chapter, or you can begin the next task on the list.
Basically, instead of using up the extra time in the block with "filler" activities, do something productive.  |