Managing Your Time By Making To Do Lists
This is a post about how to manage your time and to make use of your time more efficiently by making some lists. You need not be a professional planner or even an organized person, but this can still help you. You will save on your nerves and end up having more energy for yourself and others. Making lists also lets you be sure that every task has been properly done as well as gives you insight into what we are capable of when we focus on our tasks in order to get them done correctly.
I am aware that there are free smartphone applications that will help you do lists, but those can be a bit too complicated for personal use.
First of all, I will explain what checklist is and what to include on it. As you know, the main idea of making lists is to have things or tasks organized so they can be easily checked off and completed as well as given an order of priority. Making lists is useful for different occasions and purposes such as shopping, studying, cleaning, social activities and so on.
A few years ago I had a part-time job at a bookstore in my school. The owner of the store was a very nice person who needed me to help her with managing tasks that needed to be done on daily basis. At some point I became so used to making lists that I started doing it without any specific reasons or occasions. A few months later I understood that making to do lists had helped me a lot. I learned how to spend my time more efficiently, focus on the most important tasks and get them done at the given time.
I am very excited to give some useful tips that will help you in organizing your schedule and make better use of your free time.
The first step is to choose a place you can easily access and can lay out your lists with ease. I find it easier to do lists on a piece of paper or on for example a notebook computer. Something that you can easily get out and cut up if needed,
Let's start with the most important part—the list itself. It should be simple and clear, but the interesting thing is that the more complex it is, the less likely you are to use it. First word you should put on your to do list is "Today". This word will focus your mind and make sure that your being focused on this day alone. Later you can add things to the list that will happen on following days. You can do this with a few words as well, such as: tomorrow, next week, etc.
First of all you should write down the main activities or tasks that you want to get done for today. Try to make about 5 different tasks for 2 or 3 hours (if you have a whole day activity) or smaller if it's something shorter than an hour (e.g., half an hour).
More often than not we tend to create more tasks than we can handle and that's why we stress out and don't get them done properly. Creating less tasks will make sure your being more organized, focused and at the end of the day you will be able to do all the tasks you've written down for yourself.
You can make separate lists for different occasions that you have to prepare for or go through every day, week or month. There are a lot of things you usually do every day and should be on your list as well. If you have to go to the post office, go there first. If you have to make a recipe for dinner, put it on your list.
The next task is to categorize your tasks or activities. I love making lists with different colors and categories that represent different things or information I have to do (e.g., ask me things, pay bills when they are due, make reports, etc.). I usually put them in separate categories so I will know at a glance what I have to do today. And then I make sure that this list is on my desk or sitting next to me so that I'll be able to read it easily.
As previously mentioned, make sure that you have 5 or less things/tasks to do on your to do list. If you have a lot of tasks and activities than separate them into several parts and combine them all in one day or on several days.
The last task is to prioritize the items on your list. Mark the most important ones first or put them in a separate category but in any case try to prioritize your tasks so that at least you know which ones to start with.
So this is how you can make your lists for minor things and handle big tasks. Now let's see how to develop your own personal plan for managing your time by making it work for you.
Here are some useful tips:
1. If you are having a hard time focusing on a certain task, ask yourself: "Is there something I have to do in this moment? Why am I not doing it?" It might be something simple, but most likely you have forgotten that there is something important that requires your attention.
Conclusion. I hope this gave you some useful tips on how to make lists that are simple, clear and easy to use. Making lists is easy and does not take a lot of time. Try it for yourself and let me know your experience or tips you want to share with other readers.