10 Top Tips for your To-Do Lists (Try saying that ten times quickly)

Are your To-Do lists out of control?

Do you still think about your to-do’s, even after setting them out?

If so, here are some Top Tips. To help you make your TO-DO lists work for you.

Tips:

1.  Write down the task as a clear action of what you need to do first. ‘MOT’ is too vague and it will stay spinning in your mind, despite it being on your list. The task instead might be ‘compare prices at x &y’, or ‘book it in online with x’.

2. Goals lists with outcomes are great for motivation. However, ensure you also have your tasks set out (see above).

3.  Split your to-do’s into separate lists. I have personal, household, goals, and business ones. These are then divided further into project lists, if appropriate.  This makes your tasks easier to view, find, add, and to see what is happening at a glance.

4.  Review your lists frequently, and extract your daily, weekly, or monthly, tasks, regularly.

5.  Set your 3 most important tasks (MIT’s) for the day, week, or month.

6.  Set dates for longer terms goals. However, I also have an ‘it needs to be done relatively soon but when I feel motivated and energised to do it’, action list. Experience now tells me that I can trust myself to do it when it feels right. (This is not the same as only doing something if up against a deadline looming).

7.  Keep your lists in one place, save you rewriting them, or re-doing them.

8.  Only add a task to your calendar if it is a must do for that day. Otherwise having them there will only confuse your other lists, and make you feel stressed for not having done them.  You will also keep moving them,. Yet another action, in your busy day.

9.  Consider using a bullet journal, many find them invaluable in taking control, motivation, and upgrading their prioritisation.

10. Find a way that works for you to prioritise. One way is to ask yourself. Does this take me towards my business, personal, work, project, or team goal? Another way, is to colour code it in your mind, as red, green, or yellow. Then decide to do it, delegate it, or dump it.

10a. Ok so it isn’t quite 10 – If you still find your to-do lists stressful, and struggle with self- care, change the internal wording, from ‘should’ do them, to ‘could do them’. You could do your lawn, but you choose to rest instead.

If it’s time to tweak your to-do’s, let me know which you found the most effective.

Simona

(edited to add 10a)