Plans: they come in many forms, but what good are they if they aren’t easily usable and doable? The perfect plan is something easy to follow that flows well and makes sense – changing tasks in the middle of performing them is never a good thing – but is also elusive and impossible. There is something that will come close, though. It’s not a calendar; calendars are meant for reminding you of a date in advance. It’s a to-do list.
Writing goals
Writing a to-do list is a simple task, and yet complicated. It begins with a goal. It doesn’t even have to be a SMART goal; just a goal. For example, have clean clothes by the end of tomorrow. Write a list of tomorrow’s goals, or future goals which you can and would like to begin working on tomorrow.
Snow flaking
From here, we snow flake the goals into a to-do list.
Goal: Have clean clothes.
First flake: Do laundry
Second flake:
- Organize whites and colors
- Carry laundry to machine
- Start washer
- Empty washer; start dryer; re-fill washer
- Rinse; repeat
- Fold clothes
And done. This sort of to-do list is simple to use, easy to read, and pleasurable to organize. Perfect.
Grouping and Flow
While the perfect to-do list starts with snow flaking, there are other requirements, too. For example, the list must flow well. If I am walking back and forth between rooms and traveling out for errands throughout the day, the list was not well-constructed. Alike tasks, whether geographically or mentally, must be grouped accordingly to get the most productive system going. Never jump between left and right brain and back again all day, or you will be far more exhausted than what is believable.
Interaction
Sometimes, tasks don’t fit well with others or need to be postponed. In this case, it is better to keep two separate lists – even on the same piece of paper – in order to separate the tasks. Jumping between the two can be difficult, though, so keeping a few tasks on both lists will help a lot. For example, if I need a cake cooked and laundry to be done, those are unrelated (although I wouldn’t separate the lists, I will in this example). In this case, I would have “Clean kitchen table” on both lists, because I both fold laundry and mix batter on it.
What are your tips for creating the perfect to-do list? What kind of lists do you keep around? Do calendar fans exist in rabid form?
3 Comments
Interesting! Thats pretty cool! You don’t mind if I come here more often and read your posts do you? I love to blog but only on good subjects. Like this one for instance! Can’t wait till you post something else.
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I just carry a simple bulletted list around me, crossing items off as I go.
Phones usually have a notes app too.
Generally when I keep to-do lists, I’ll list them from least important to most important.
Since I got my smartphone however, it makes it a lot easier to transfer tasks I didn’t do from one list to the next.