How to manage todo-lists

Many of us have some sort of ToDo-lists that seem to mysteriously grow larger for every passing day. Adding a lot of fun things to a list is easy, but later on it may become a burden.

ToDo-lists are not a vicious thing by nature. It’s how we handle them that matters.

Same thing goes for your daily life. You have a maximum number of hours in every day and that’s a fact that cannot be changed. When your calendar gets full, you cannot fill it with more activities without first removing something, or else all activities will suffer.

What is the key to effectively managing ToDo-lists and defeat procrastination?

• Select

  Write stuff down to get it off your mind, but be selective about which items you add to your list. You simply don’t have time to do all the things you want.

• Combine

  Consider consolidate items with other items, to get more effective while executing in a batch. Is there any item on the list which can make the other items easier?

• Eliminate

  Is there anything that can be done in a few minutes? Just do it!

  Any items that once had a purpose, but no longer? Delete them!

• Structure

  There are plenty of ways to structure the information, ranging from a pile of yellow notes to entering them in a task management system. There is no universal method that suits all personalities, so try different approaches until you find your own style.

• Validate

  Is it really necessary to do that particular list item? Will it matter in five years? What will happen if it is removed? Perhaps the quality of the other items will increase. Remember, a deleted item still counts as “done” in terms of the list.

For a more in-depth examination of the concept, check out the classic Getting Things Done by David Allen, which contains a lot of good advice. It can get a bit tedious at times, but give it a chance and cherry-pick the things that work for you.

I also recommend The 80-20 principle by Richard Koch, which explains the Pareto principle in great detail. The short version is that 80% of effects come from 20% of the causes. Note that this could apply to both good things and bad things.

If you feel overwhelmed, try to think of it as having “too overambitious lists” rather than “insufficient time”. You can always do less things, but you can seldom give yourself more time. Be kind to yourself.