To Do Lists
One of the most effective time planning tools is the “To Do” list. If you have a continually updated list of things you need to achieve and their respective priorities, it is far easier to be focused and manage your time wisely. All successful people use To Do lists.
I have three types of To Do lists. The main one is a general list of things I have to do in the next week or two. It is split into the top half which is work related and the bottom half which is personal.
The second list is a daily “Must Do” list which will typically have that day’s priorities plus appointments. In general this list will not have more than 10 items as it is better to complete the list than run out of time.
I have recently expanded this list so that either on a Sunday night or Monday morning, I will rule up one piece of standard size paper with five separate sections for:
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
FridayUnder each day I will write out the most important five to seven tasks I want to accomplish. While I could just as easily do this on a calendar or print out my Outlook calendar, there is something about writing it all out that focuses my mind on planning each day of the coming week. It is also easy to carry forward any tasks that didn’t get done on one day, to the next. Also doing it on a Sunday night forces your mind to start planning ahead. This is an excellent strategy to improve your efficiency and time management.
The third list is a “To Do in Town” list. I live 15km from the city, so I minimize my trips into town by only going in once a week or once a fortnight. Every time I think of something I need in town I put it on this list. Whenever I go to town I have seven or eight things to do, and I can race around, do them all and not waste any time.
It doesn’t matter where you keep your list – your computer, PDA, mobile phone or on paper. Paper works best for me.
Another advantage of To Do lists is you never miss an appointment or a deadline. I often highlight appointments so that I make sure I don’t miss one. I also use the reminder function on my mobile phone as a back-up.
If you have trouble managing your daily tasks or your time, start using To Do lists.