TO-DO LIST

WHY KEEP A TO-DO LIST?

• It helps you take control of your time
• It gives a one-glance look at everything you want to accomplish
• Minimizes mind-clutter by keeping track of odds and ends
• Improves your memory by writing everything down
• Frees up mental "RAM" by emptying your brain of trivial items
• Helps you prioritize your activities

YOUR MASTER TO-DO LIST

• Keep a notepad nearby so you can enter items as they occur to you
• Empty all of the to-do's in your head onto a piece of paper
• Don't worry about priority, importance, or time frame for completing
• This is your "master to-do list"
• Don't try to tackle all the items on this list
• You will build your "daily to-do list" from your master list

CATEGORIZING AND PRIORITIZING

• Break your master list into meaningful categories by activity ( home maintenance, work, calls, errands, to buy, etc.)
• Break large projects into smaller individual tasks
• Assign a letter code to each item on the list ( "A" = must do; "B" = should do; "C" = could do)
• As you add or complete items, re-evaluate the priority of each

YOUR DAILY TO-DO LIST

• Limit your daily list to no more than 10 items you hope to complete
• Include no more than 2 large or difficult tasks
• Your daily list includes appointments and commitments to others
• Also include "A" items off of your master list
• If you have time, fill in the gaps with some "B" and "C" items
• Leave room for urgent items that just pop up

CREATING A "NOT-TO-DO" LIST

• Not every item on your to-do list has to be done
• The key to productivity is awareness of how you spend your time ( what you do, how long it takes, and what benefit you get)
• Create a log tracking your activities for a week
• Evaluate the time investment versus "payoff" for each activity
• How much benefit or enjoyment are you getting from each activity?
• Keep high-payoff and enjoyable activities on your to-do list
• Ask yourself if low-payoff activities need to be done at all
• If they do need to be done, do they have to be done by you?
• If they need to be done by you, could they be simplified?

TACKLING YOUR LIST

• Tasks should be completed in order of importance unless they have a specific time frame (like a meeting or class)
• Is this the best possible use of your time at the exact moment?
• Your goal is to complete all of your "A" items first then finish as many "B" and "C" items in the time available
• Be realistic about how much you can accomplish in a day
• Create an agenda for your daily task list
• Schedule times for completing specific activities whenever possible
• If you didn't complete a task, you had too many items on your list
• Move unfinished items to another day and re-evaluate the priority

GETTING YOUR TO-DO'S DONE

• If you procrastinate, create artificial deadlines to finish early
• Know your work style (long stretches or short bursts)
• Understand your high and low energy periods
• Plan your to-do's accordingly
• Make liberal use of memory joggers -- alarms, sticky notes, etc.

FINDING AN ALTERNATIVE

• Get your family to take on household responsibilities from your list
• Ask a co-worker for assistance with routine business tasks, and offer to help out the next time that co-worker needs a break!
• Make use of support staff (admin clerks, assistants, etc.)
• Outsource jobs to an independent contractor or freelancer