Become more organised – To Do Lists that work!
I love a good To Do List. Why? I’ll admit I get a bit of a rush each time I cross something off. A feeling of mini achievements throughout my day/week! Why is it then that some people have all the intentions of a to do list yet you feel as if you get nowhere. Maybe you just don’t have the right sort of lists. You need to spend a bit more time constructing them properly. Time to take charge of your time and here’s how..
1. Construct the Big Picture To Do List first. Put down every project you have on the boil. Then prioritise the list giving them numbers.
2. Make up the next days Action List beginning with your top priorities. Tasks need to be specific. Not things like “get that major report done”. Break them down into smaller more achievable tasks. Prepare your list as if you were writing instructions for someone else. In our example it might be, “ Send email to XYZ to get info for the report”, “Get the templates worked out I need to use for the report”, “Ring Bill Blogs to let him know the report is coming and will be there in a x days”. If you need to phone someone put their number down on the list – put some notes on important things to ask them. The point is the easier your list is to follow the more likely you are to do it.
3. Keep your lists practical and relevant to that day only. Mine is normally only 10 or so things. Remember the list continually rolls. As things get crossed off at the top, new things get added at the bottom. Once you get to the end of your Action List, return to the Big Picture List and again construct some simple steps to follow. For large multi step projects just put down a few steps at a time.
If you follow these simple steps you will start to see and feel achievement right away. Always keep your “Big Picture Lists”. These show the tasks you have completed as well as what lay ahead. That way if you have those doubting thoughts of “I’m not getting anywhere”…look at your list and you’ll know you have, which might just be enough fuel to spur you on for another big day! Good Luck
Yours in Design
Meredith
