The to-do list, or to do list, as we coaches say, is the simplest and most effective personal productivity tool. You who follow my texts must already be an “expert” in organizing time and setting goals, and even so, I believe you will find the method I use to write my to-do list interesting.
Illustrious masters taught me that when we know something that works, it is our obligation to share it with others so that everyone can benefit in the same way or enjoy it even more, so here is "my system".
All of us, at some point in our lives, had the need to make a list writing down the things that needed to be done, that is, we made a “to do list”.
The great thing about the to-do list is that we transform our thoughts, about what needs to be done, into something concrete, visible and that we can even touch: countless thoughts that live in our mind, calling and diverting our attention for hours and days, from time to time. suddenly they are there, concrete, visible, written on paper or on a cell phone screen. Thoughts that now just ask to be executed as planned.
Your to-do list can be an excellent tool to keep personal and professional productivity high and, like any other tool, you can use it actively or become a slave to it: it's up to you to choose.
Going through different stages I found the way to write my “to do list”, which today I have the honor and privilege to share with you readers of Eu Sem Fronteiras.
What do I write on my to-do list?
I, Diego, write everything, yes absolutely everything, simple as that.
Writing everything down on my list I am absolutely sure that I emptied my mind those thoughts that haunted me throughout the day, but above all that anything I need to do is written on my “to do list”. Being sure of this increases my confidence in my personal productivity system, which makes me face the day-to-day with more tranquility and systemic vision.
If you haven't had this feeling yet, you will also realize the difference between having a momentary to-do list and a true individual and personal productivity system.
In fact, I'll let you in on a secret, not everything makes the list: the exception is last-minute meetings and appointments.
All other activities that have a correct temporal placement find their place in my calendar (there are numerous applications for this and because it is easily accessible I use Google Calendar).
How do I organize my to-do list?
The technology is fantastic and every day we find more and more free apps to improve our personal productivity, but there is a small detail: sometimes it takes us 15 minutes to organize the electronic agenda, control priorities, settings, alerts, tags, reminders and much more… Of course Obviously, each person needs to find the best system for their own needs, but if it takes 15 minutes to do an activity that can be done in three minutes, something is going wrong.
A to-do list must have two characteristics: it must be rigid enough to guarantee temporal stability and, at the same time, it must be flexible to allow you to organize any task you need or want to perform.
Personally, I prefer to limit myself to three fundamental aspects:
- What do I need to do: Each activity is expressed by a verb followed by as many details as possible. So on my list the word “game” becomes “buy ticket for España vs Argentina”, the word “health” becomes “get blood test results” etc. When I can't describe in detail the task I need to perform, it means I need to clarify the objective. Having clear goals, especially in the professional area, accelerates the path towards success.
- Where do I need to do it: There are activities that can only be performed in a specific place, so to simplify things I chose to have only three lists: #home, #work, #away. Knowing where you can do the tasks when you find yourself in one of these three environments, you will be able to dedicate yourself only to the activities that can be performed there. Effective and simple, gain focus and save time.
- When do I need to do it: For each activity I put a deadline and approximately the time I will need to complete it. When the task doesn't have a deadline, I put it on another list that I call "one day". It is very important to periodically check the “someday” list to remember the tasks and take advantage of future opportunities to do it.
That's all Diego? Well yes, that's all.
When you need to organize your own to-do list, today we find two types of people: those who are adept at electronic technology and those who are fans of the classic agenda.
Remember that there is no right or wrong, what matters most is that you find “your way”, whether using one of the numerous useful applications, cell phones, tablets, notebooks that facilitate the organization of your list, or also taking advantage of the your pen and your diary. Anyway, anything goes when you can do everything you wanted, in the best possible way and within the given time.
I usually use the “todoist” app to receive my daily plan, but I love to write in my diary, which is a great ally wherever I am in the world, with or without internet coverage.
And do you already use any “to do list”?
