I like big lists and I cannot lie.
I have had quite the journey with my obsessive need to make lists. My mom can be credited as the person who taught me the joys of list making. She also taught me procrastination, stress, and the pressure that comes with an incomplete list.
Now as any Type-A, goodie-two-shoes person will tell you, it is best to have everything laid out the night before so that you are prepared the next day.
I always have a list drawn up before bed. Only my lists aren’t under five tasks. My lists span novels, they reach into subcategories, my lists cause meltdowns over the sheer number of things that I have to do.
This is a piece for all those out there who push themselves to do more than they can handle, for those who try to drown out problems in their life by piling on the things they need to accomplish by the days end. This is for those like me, whose need to list everything is both their greatest asset and their greatest weakness. You aren’t alone.
Most days I spend hovering over my daily to-do list deciding how I am going to accomplish forty-five tasks that will each take over an hour in one twenty-four hour period.
It’s impossible. But my brain is convinced that it is not. The kicker is if I only finish half of what is on the to-do list, I will feel like an awful unproductive piece of garbage.
Feeling like an awful unproductive piece of garbage happens a lot. Like, a lot a lot.
Now I am very divided on the way in which I want to approach this piece. I want to praise the mighty to-do list from the rooftops. But I also want to advise those who, like me, who are entirely taken with living by a list of to-do’s, to take a break.
If you feel like a disaster and have no idea how to simply get things done, I have a tip for you. If you feel like you have a million things to do and never get anything done, I have a tip for you. Strangely enough, this tip is the same for both categories of people.
My advice? Make a list. A small list, but a list all the same.
The challenge? The key is to only put three items on it.
The first item should be something that you have had on your list of things-to-do for over a month. This is the item that will be both incredibly difficult to make yourself accomplish while also likely being the most satisfying task you complete all day.
The second task should be time sensitive. This may be a school assignment or a work-related to-do. This is a task that you must get done. It is better to get this on your top three to-do lists early on rather than waiting. It will be calming to realize that while everyone else is scrambling last minute, you completed the task a week ago.
The third task should be something that you are excited to work on. Whether it is to finish reading a book, to complete that difficult level of the video game you are playing, or to go for a hike. Pick something that gives back to yourself and nourishes your mind.
Sure, you can keep your obsessive list of to-dos’ that keeps growing and growing with no signs of stopping. But tuck it away during the day. Only take it out in the evening when you pull the three things from it that you plan to complete tomorrow.
And if you complete all three things early in the day? Even better! Choose an item one at a time to add to the list, never overwhelming yourself with a slew of things to get done at one time.
The key is not to stress yourself with making a million dollars when you haven’t even made a penny. Take baby steps and before you know it, you will be accomplishing your biggest goals.
