From To-Do to To-Done: How to Manage the Tasks On Your List

No time to read? Listen instead!

Do you have a to-do list that you’re working from today? If not, for the purpose of this blog, you may want to make one. Once you’ve got your list in front of you, continue reading.

When you look at your list, how does it make you feel? If you find that your list helps you to prioritize the things vying for your attention which in turn makes you feel calm and confident, stop reading this blog and proceed with your day! Ultimately, that’s the purpose of a to-do list!

I, however, find that to-do lists can sometimes have the exact opposite effect. When I make the list and look it over, I find myself suddenly caught in the web of all that I “have to” do.

• I have to write a welcome back letter to my new students!
• I have to run out to Target to buy stationery so that I can hand write those letters!
• I have to draft a syllabus for each of the two different sections of English that I am teaching this year!
• I have to pick the books that I want to read aloud on the first day of school!
  I have to figure out how to use Google classroom!

If looking at your list finds you, too, caught in the same web of “have to,” the first thing I want you to do is stop…and breathe.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Do this for as many times as you need. Remember: nothing at all gets done when we are absolutely paralyzed by everything we “have to” do.

The next thing I want you to do is revise the title of your list. It is no longer your “To Do” list but rather, your “Get To Do” list.

Now, pick something from your list and insert it into the following sentence stem:
I get to (insert item from your list).
Example: I get to draft a welcome back to school letter.

As a point of comparison, insert that same item into this sentence stem:
I have to (insert the item from your list).
Example: I have to draft a welcome back to school letter.

Do you feel the difference? The words “have to” make me feel tense. The words “get to” make me feel playful, excited, and might I say, even a bit giddy. The energy of “get to” is light whereas the energy of “have to” heavy. Shifting our language can have a profound effect on how we feel about what needs doing.

Now, let’s talk about how to prioritize what’s on your list. If you knew the me that was me a year ago, I’d tell you to look at the list and circle the thing that feels most pressing and start there. Truth be told, I still sometimes do this. But more times than not, I don’t find it to be the best approach. What I often find is better is to begin by looking at the list and asking, “What here am I most excited about?” When I give my attention to the thing that I am most excited about, it gives me energy. With more energy, I build my capacity for productivity.

Another strategy that can work well when you are prioritizing the tasks that need doing is looking at the list and asking which will take the least amount of time to complete. If everything on your list feels big and overwhelming, then be intentional about peppering your list with tasks that you know will be quick. For example, I added “Throw away markers that no longer work” and “Put books underneath desk back on bookshelf” to my list because I knew that it would take little to no time to do these things. I fit these little tasks between more taxing tasks which gives my brain the break it needs AND allows me to cross something off my list which I LOVE doing. Watching the tasks on my list disappear makes me feel accomplished and the more I do, the more I want to do!

As you think about your “Get To Do” list, the last piece of advice that I would offer is to be sure to add what I like to call a “non-task” task to your list. A “non-task” task is something that takes zero effort and can serve to center you if you become overwhelmed. For example, sometimes I add a bullet point with the words, “ “Be happy” or “Look around you and notice something you are grateful for.” Not only are these things quick and easy to do, they are important reminders of the real reason our lists exist in the first place– to experience this great journey of living. In the end, is there really anything greater than this that we “get” to do?

Good luck with making your way through the things you need to do to begin the school year and if you have other hacks that help you, please share!