A tip for your to-do list...

An out-of-control to-do list...
 
Like lots of people, I have many, many tasks I want to get done:
 

• Things I absolutely must do;
  
  
• Things I’d love to get done but probably never will;
  
  
• Things I “should” do but never seem to find the time...

But lately, my to-do list had gone CRAZY!

Pages and pages - just looking at it made me feel stressed.

Yikes! 

And then I realized...
 
I noticed that I had projects listed among my tasks.
 
And, as I learned from Jen at Get Bullish, a project is not a task.
 
Therefore, it should not be on your to-do list.

What do I mean by “project”?
 
Well, some of my tasks might include: emailing an invoice to a new client; planning dinner for tomorrow night; and texting my sister...
 
But my projects are things like: cleaning up my laptop, updating my website, and getting through my emails... 
 
Things that require a chunk of time, and include more than one action.
 
Projects can’t be crossed off easily (things like “get fit” can’t be done in one session... sadly!) so seeing them on our list all the time usually makes us feel bad.

The solution...
 
I moved all my projects to another list. (I know that's not rocket science, lol.)
 
But the results were awesome: 
 

• My head immediately felt clearer.
  
  
• My to-do list contained a list of small actions (in priority order).
  
  
• I knew exactly what to work on next.

 
This is really important, because overwhelm isn’t about having too much to do - it’s about knowing where to start.
 
(I didn’t make that quote up, but I love it!)

The takeaway...
 
If you’re feeling stressed looking at your to-do list, check if you have projects nestled in there.
 
If you do, take them out, and put them somewhere separate.
 

• Plan a period of time to work through them (one night a week, for example);
  
  
• Put them as a reminder in your calendar (e.g., do weights M/W/F at 8:30am...);
  
  
• Or choose the first task or action step for each project... and that task can go on your to-do list!

 
One final note...

I have to remind myself that life is more than to-do lists ;)

I want to use my to-do list to feel good, not bad (more on that next week).

To-do lists help us feel organized and move towards our goals... but they shouldn't be a weight around our neck.

I’d love to hear your thoughts – how do you organize your to-do list?
 
Share your system(s) in the comments!

Claire 

❤