Do you ever find yourself slipping under the covers in bed and laying your head on your pillow at night only to have your thoughts swarm through your head like busy bees? Forget counting sheep! Try counting buzzing bees! In those moments sometimes it is easy to question, “What in the heck did I do today?” or “Where did my time go?” It is easy to reprimand ourselves for not accomplishing more on the ever lengthening to-do list. Maybe you find yourself fumbling in the dark, grabbing for your smart device to make a note about some upcoming events OR maybe you experience that dreaded moment of panic of what you completely forgot to do.
Our racing minds can make sleep quite difficult and sometimes will even heave unfair emotions of guilt, regret and frustration, just at the moment when we are trying to enter rest.
I think we have all been there. I think we have all gotten to the end ofthe day and wondered if we used our time wisely, if we prioritized correctly, if we stayed focused, motivated and energized. I know I have gotten to the end of my day before and wondered, when did I make time to laugh? I have contemplated if I enjoyed my day or just lived it, going through the motions. I have asked myself how often I smiled? Did I make someone else’s day amazing? Was I productive? Intentional? Did I make progress towards my own personal goals?
So many questions!! But we should be resting, right?!
As a list maker, I am well known for making lists, in fact, very long lists! I have notepads of lists, probably in a box somewhere. Why I keep them around, I do not know. But, what I do know is that I have always used this strategy to help keep myself organized, focused and on target. Many of us use smart phones/devices for our lists now, but a list is a list, regardless of your form.
01. List Your Priorities From Greatest to Least
Sometimes we spew all the thoughts in our head on a list, writing down everything just to clear some space in our head to think. Trying to manage so many thoughts in our head feels chaotic and therefore writing them down can be quite helpful. However, a long list of “stuff” does not focus our energy and intentions on any one (or few) things. If we simply close our eyes and choose something to start with, it may not be the most important.
Instead, each morning, before beginning your day, choose several activities that you know are the most important for your day and list them in order of importance, so that if you only were to accomplish the top event, you would be satisfied with how you spent your time. If it is calling your grandmother who just got out of the hospital, jot it down. If it is reaching out to a professional you met at a networking event, get it on your list. It doesn’t have to be important to someone else, only you.
Remember that every day, there will be unexpected snags in our plans and deceptive distractions. Don’t’ be surprised. Expect these! Become disciplined but flexible.
02. Be Real
Make sure that the goals and to-dos you state can actually be accomplished within the day. This is a daily list, not a future goals list. Stay practical and think of the small steps towards your bigger goals. If you are working on implementing a new marketing strategy for your business, choose 1 area to run with. If you are planning to clean your house, list what rooms you will tackle and what jobs you will do. Avoid being too vague as you will never know if you actually accomplished your goal. Remember that you are not making Wonder Woman’s to-do list- yours is your own. What is important to you?
If you find yourself disappointed at the end of the day or feeling unproductive, maybe you made progress but you were expecting too much OR maybe you didn’t make a list and can’t check off any jobs well done. If vacuuming is at the top of your list, then do it, but if the work presentation takes precedence, then don’t waste time worrying if the vacuuming has to wait. That’s why people have dogs, right?! Keep your list simple and specific and target all your energy to the top activities.
03. Don’t Write Intimidating and Overwhelming To-Dos.
We often avoid to-dos that feel monstrous, overwhelming, and stressful. It causes feelings of failure before we even begin and this may direct us to avoid it altogether. If there are some big tasks you need to accomplish, break them down into small, “doable” steps. If you need to clean out the kids’ closets to pack up items to give away, start with 1 step like sorting through all the books to re-shelve or pack up. Another day you may decide to sort through all the clothing. If you avoid the activity, it is probably too big. Re-evaluate how to can break it up into smaller steps.
04. Set a Time Frame
Some activities need to happen but are not appealing. For these jobs, give yourself an allotted amount of time to complete it. By doing so, it can help you stay focused during the activity and may even be motivation to zip right through it. If meal planning is not your thing, determine when you will do it and how much time you have to get it done. If you detest cleaning the bathrooms, how much time do you need to complete the job to check it off your list?
05. Refocus Throughout the Day
Keep your list nearby and within sight so that you can refocus and determine how to catch yourself when you are deviating from you plan. In the beginning, you may even need to set “check-ins” at a specific time to reframe and refocus based on the day’s events.
Don’t forget to eliminate unnecessary distractions to your priority list. There are endless interruptions all around! We can’t get away from them! They are often quite powerful, catching us off guard, deviating our attention and thoughts, giving the appearance of importance.
But there are several distractions that we can control like:
Pop up emails– they show up in the right corner of the screen and give the appearance of being important RIGHT NOW. They are especially distracting for anyone who is working at a computer during the day. Turn off the pop up andset specific times that you will give emails your attention. Stop multitasking and start focusing.
Alerts on our phones– who doesn’t hear an alert and want to check? How many times has this interfered with family time? How much time does this steal while we are working- what if we had to add up all the minutes? How much more efficient could we be if we planned our social media time instead of it running us?
Every time a distraction occurs, our energy and attention is diverted. It takes more time to refocus our energy and get going again. Save these precious moments for the tasks at the top of your list. Think of what you could accomplish. Think of the sound sleep you will get!
24 hours.
1440 minutes.
86,400 seconds.
That’s all we get every single day. No gets any more or any less. With so many things to do, opportunities, dreams and visions of more, it is easy to feel weighed down and clueless where to start. Learning how to make a smart, effective daily list that actually motivates us instead of reminds us of all that we didn’t do might take a bit of practice. Turning off the distractions will make you even more keenly aware of how often they appear. But training ourselves to focus all of our energy on the things that matter most today, is empowering.
Tonight, own your rest! Don’t give up precious moments of sleep in turmoil about productivity, performance and missing the mark.
And tomorrow, before you engage all your God-given potential, plan your priorities, because “The secret of your success is determined by your daily agenda.”– John Maxwell.
TRUTH: Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple “Yes” or “No.” Otherwise youwill be condemned.
James 5:12