Time Management For Dummies - Making an Effective To-Do List
Writing a to-do list every day is not that hard to do. But how do you turn it into an effective tool? Some lists may seem overwhelming with many, many tasks on them. Looking at the list and thinking "How am I going to get through ALL this today?" can be very daunting, so you may find yourself only putting the big, important tasks on the list, trusting your memory to remember the smaller jobs. This is not a good idea. Your mind will become cluttered trying to remember all the other things not on your list. This can make you unfocused for the tasks at hand. The purpose of committing tasks to a list is to takeaway the strain of remembering them from your brain.
Your to-do list must be linked in some way to your personal goals. Remember that goals can be broken down into stages. Using this knowledge will help in building an effective list. Your to-do list also must include the every day tasks such as taking the kids to the dentist and doing the shopping. What it can’t be is only mundane tasks or only goal-related tasks. The list must include everything. There are many techniques you can use when drafting your to-do list, but the simpler the better.
First, decide where you are going to write your to-do list. There’s no point writing it down and then forgetting where you put it or not being able to access it. Using computer programs is becoming more popular to deal with all the multi-tasking expected each day.
Secondly categorize your to-do list in terms of Goals and Tasks. This will make it easier to keep track of what you have to do and what are the most important things to accomplish each day. Goal stages have actions to carry them out. It is those actions that will become part of your to-do list. Tasks include your mundane items.
Next prioritize your actions and tasks for the day. This is an important component of any to-do list. Those that have time constraints must be at the top of the list. Some to-do lists will include time slots for when certain actions/tasks will be carried out. Some could be set out as a grid with a more flexible time pattern. For example Monday 10am-12 noon, meet with caterer, phone Bill, arrange dental appointment. Any of these three items could be carried out first, but all of them need to be completed in the two hour time slot - barring urgent interruptions of course.
Again flexibility needs to be considered. You may need to take the dog to the vet after work, but if your car breaks down that won’t happen. Your to-do list is a reminder of what you want to accomplish. If you can’t get it all done on that day, move it to tomorrow. Unless there are deadlines for certain projects, be prepared to be adaptable in your approach to creating an effective to-do list.
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