Fresh take on “To-Do Lists” to maximise your day
How many times have you written down a to-do list only to find that you’ve actually only achieved 1-2 items (at most) by the end of the day?
You’re beating yourself up about it – when all you need is to get a bit organised!
Enter the To-Do List Timetable
What to do – assign a SPECIFIC TIME to each action/job on your list – no matter how small or trivial
Have a look below –
- 7-7.30am – Make and eat Breakfast
- 7.30-8am – Read papers for meeting at 10am
- 8-8.45 – Get ready for work
- 8.45-8.55am – Travel to work
- 8.55-9am – Coffee/Tea/Water and settle in at desk
- 9-9.45am – clear emails, addressing urgent matters first
- 9.45-9.55am – prepare for upcoming meeting (travel requirements, personal requirements, etc.)
- 10-12pm – Attend Meeting
- 12-12.30pm – Go for a walk to relax and recharge (set the intention!)
- 12.30-1pm – Eat Lunch, reflect on the meeting/or prep for the afternoon ahead
- 1-2pm – Clear Emails (2nd round today)
- 2-2.15pm – Small break from the desk to clear the head, check personal messages, etc.
- AND SO FORTH… You’re getting the idea…
But what about the weekend?
Some people find this simple during the week – but have difficulty when the weekend comes and those long-overdue household jobs are lurking over your shoulder!
Treat these days the exact same! Make a To-Do List Timetable and stick to it:
- 7-7.30am – Make and eat Breakfast
- 7.30-8am – Read morning paper
- 8-8.45 – Have a shower, personal prep for the day
- 8.45-8.55am – Consult your To-Do List Timetable (or create it now!)
- 8.55-9am – Prep for first job
- 9-11am – Painting the back shed (first coat)
- 11-12pm – Hour break to do other day-to-day jobs like washing, cleaning up the lounge/tidying, or just hanging out with family, checking messages, scrolling social media 😉
- 12-1pm – Do a solid hour of Study
- 1-1.30pm – Check in with family, help with things they might need, go for a walk/short workout perhaps
- 1.30-2pm – Prepare and eat Lunch
- 2-3pm – Clean out/re-organize the two cupboards that you have been meaning to do.
- 3-4pm – 2nd coat on the back shed
- 4pm – RELAX and CHILL with friends and family
But wait, aren’t we getting a little pedantic here?
Now please, don’t get me wrong, every day DOES NOT NEED TO BE SCHEDULED!!! But… and this is a BIG but here… if you are finding that you get to 12pm and you have achieved NOTHING that you wanted to accomplish, then perhaps this strategy is for you!
Benefits of the To-Do List Timetable
- Obviously, you get your jobs done! Sense of accomplishment!
- Gives you a better understanding of your time management skills – did you completely under-estimate or overestimate the time it would take you to do certain jobs?
- This leads on to… Where are you losing (bleeding) time? Somewhere between the ultra-awesome post on socials that lead you to an online shop, that lead you to searching for things to buy that you don’t need, that lead you to wasting an hour (and $50…)… Sound familiar??
- Helps set a pace for the day – gives us an indication of progress, which for many people is VERY motivating! Are we ahead of schedule? Awesome! What could we fit into this extra 15mins? It might be another job, or you might treat yourself to a little break.
- For those who love to “Tick Jobs off the List” – you still can, and it still feels AWESOME!
