Let’s talk all things to do lists!
We all juggle a million things each day, from keeping on top of appointments and paying bills, to remembering family birthdays and dry cleaning you need to pick up.
It doesn’t matter if you’re an old school pen and paper list person (like me) or if you prefer to use the latest digital productivity app, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and in a permanent muddle if all your information is stored across multiple locations eg notepads, post it notes, calendars, emails, text messages and phone notes to name a few.
Writing things down on your to do list saves our brain space and sanity. Trying to remember everything is not only overwhelming but can also discourage us from ever actually starting. Thinking about all the things you need to get done is not being productive and doing what needs to be done.
Simple and Effective Ways to Stay on Track
Below are some simple and effective ways to help you organise your list to ensure your life admin stays on track.
- Firstly, you need to decide if you are going to keep a hand-written manual list or a digital version. Whichever you choose, you must ensure you only have ONE location for your list.
- Consolidate all your lists.
- Batch similar tasks to complete together for more efficiency eg, phone calls, emails, errands.
- Breakdown your task list into bite sized chunks so it’s less overwhelming and you can make progress.
- Prioritise. Each day choose the 3 most important things on your list and complete those items first. Don’t start anything else until they are actioned.
- Set clear deadlines for your projects – if you haven’t actioned or started something by a certain date, re-evaluate if you really need to complete it yourself, or if you could outsource or eliminate it completely.
- At the end of the day, laser in on one final task, finish it, then call it quits. Don’t let yourself be distracted by a bunch of half-done tasks that you’d like to mark off your to-do list.
- To get a head start each day, write down your to do list + main priorities for the following day the night before. You’ll thank yourself in the morning, I promise!
Digital Lists
Are you thinking about taking the plunge and converting to a digital list? Here are my top 5 recommended apps to keep your productivity levels high:
- Trello
- Evernote
- Wunderlist
- Monday
- Asana
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your ever growing to do list and would like some further support to help you take back control of your life, then please do not hesitate to reach out via email hello@scouthgd.com.au to make an appointment for a FREE 15 minute phone consultation with me.
Keep an eye out on my Instagram and Facebook pages for more tips and tricks to help you stay organised and clutter free.
