The Gift of a Daily To-do List
Happy place restored.
Occasionally, I wake up anxious — not a great way to start the day.
My anxiety of late is affecting my productivity and is the reason I haven’t been very productive the last, uh, few years. Gulp.
I believe the number one productivity killer is lack of presence. Anxiety is worry and fear — taking us out of the present.
Not residing in the “here and now” hampers one’s focus. If you are worrying about what needs to get done, you can’t focus on getting it done.
To prevent an anxiety rush first thing in the morning, I write a simple task list the night before of what I need to do the next day to ensure a peaceful sleep: nothing fancy, just a simple “to-do” list. I try not to wait until I’m overwhelmed to make a to-do list, having a daily habit of writing a list every night or first thing in the morning gets ahead of the flood of anxiety.
List-making restores a sense of calm and order to your day; that’s why integrating it into your daily life is so essential.
When I know I have a busy day ahead of me, and I don’t write a nightly list, often, I’m anticipating stress from the moment I open my eyes.
As women and mothers, we take care of many things for other people in our lives who are in our care. I know fathers do this also, however, there are stats on this, and women still take on more of the responsibility children require, even if they have a job outside of the home.
We sometimes forget taking time for ourselves and meeting our own needs is just as essential, if not more important.
This balancing act can be overwhelming. And of course, some days are busier than others. I have since given up on the ever-elusive balance, and have shifted my mindset to the act of practicing one single thing, at one time, in chunks of time, to end my multi-tasking madness that gets a lot done, but nothing done well.
I just got an email of the required materials to buy for my daughter’s next year of school, and it’s only the middle of July.
The start of a new school year comes with a lot of time-consuming tasks that can zap my mental energy, and derail me from the things I need to get done for myself, merely writing a to-do list allows my brain to breathe a sigh of relief.
When life overtakes me, it helps to write things down. Even if it is just a quick to-do list on the nearest scrap of paper I can find. Writing it down gives your brain a mental break allowing you to concentrate on getting stuff done, instead of trying to remember all the tasks required of us.
Once my tasks for the day are on paper, it instantly focuses me on the moment.
Freeing my mind is another reason why I journal. Once my worries are down on paper, the need to worry about them seems to vanish into thin air, the paper they are written on is now holding them so my mind can let go — permitting me to remain in the present moment.
Happy place restored.
I can start my day feeling stronger and in control — my mind at peace, my task list in hand, empowered, as I conquer my day.
Jessica is a writer, an online entrepreneur, and a recovering Type A personality. She lives in Los Angeles with her extrovert daughter, two dogs, and two cats.
