If your to-do list is a scattered sampling of post-it notes, or if your email in-box dictates your priorities for the day, here are some techniques that may help you be more effective.
5 Tips for Managing Your To-Do List
1. It’s about impact, not urgency. When looking at your to-do list, determine the three things where your time will have the greatest impact, and develop a plan to address those first.
2. Keep it together. Don’t try to maintain a different to-do list for business and personal tasks. Use the same piece of paper, with two columns (or front and back) so you can focus on one list while keeping the other in mind. Note: Women are much better at balancing both simultaneously than men are. Men typically function better with more distance between the two lists.
3. Book a breather. Schedule time on your calendar to clear your head (a workout, a jog, even a brisk walk around your office building or neighborhood). This will actually make you more effective at your other tasks.
4. Make an appointment. If you keep putting off finishing that proposal, paying the bills or making that phone call, literally schedule a block of time on your calendar to get it done (and guard that time as you would an appointment with someone else).
5. Pack for the trip. Take advantage of moments in waiting rooms, on the train, at soccer practice or waiting for notoriously late co-workers or friends. Carry note cards and stamps to dash off a quick business or personal or thank-you note; one more thing to cross off the list.
What are some to-do list techniques you use to manage the demands on your time?
Clifford A. Bailey
CEO, father, speaker, writer, community leader