What is a to-do list? Benefits on maintaining a to-do list & tips to write a to-do list.

Have you ever come across the quote “Before you eat the elephant, make sure you know what parts you want to eat.” ― Todd Stocker.

Well it’s an interesting metaphor. No one is going to eat an elephant. But the purpose behind this quote is to remind us the importance of planning the tasks before taking action. We have already discussed the benefits of planning in the previous blog post.

In today’s blog post let’s dive deep into what a to-do list is and how to maintain one. You must have tried using a to-do list at one point of time in your life or you might have seen people and influencers around you use one.

Almost all the successful people use some form of to-do list to remind them of their important tasks throughout the day. Many people find the to-do list as an ultimate savior to get organized and productive in life.

What is this to-do list? Well, let’s find out.

What is a To-Do List?

The definition is simple. The name covers most of the information you need to know. Yes, It is a list with tasks you plan/need/want to do that day.

It can be anything as simple as get a haircut or pedicure done to major tasks like file income tax, complete the office project, etc.,

It’s that simple. People often think that to-do list is some rocket science to crack and they don’t have the right key for it. Well it’s not true. You just need to know a few things you must do and mustn’t do.

Now before seeing how to write a to-do list it is important to know a few benefits of it.

3 Major Benefits of maintaining a to-do list:

1. A clear purpose and clarity

The main role of a to-do list is to give clarity on one’s day. To know and understand the important and not so important tasks so they can prepare for the day.

Have you ever been in a situation where you had 1000 things to do in your office and you had to get something important for a family member or for yourself, but completely forgot about it? I guess most of us have been in that situation.

Little did we know we were getting habituated to late and last minute project submissions when we didn’t plan the project. Now this last minute submission will put you in so much stress that at one point you will start hating your job.

But with a little bit of planning and time management, you could have actually managed to complete the report on time and have a peaceful day.

When you manage a to-do list you will have a clear idea on what to do that particular day, which will give you clarity and purpose for the day.

2. Better control over your day

No matter how well you plan, always acknowledge the fact that there will be some unplanned tasks coming your way and you have to adjust to them.

In such cases, without panicking, all you have to do is, see if the unplanned task is important and urgent. If it is both then start working on it and shift one or two tasks from your to-do list that are not so important to complete next day.

This way your to-do list gives you the power to have a little control over your day. This also helps you from panic attacks and stressing over the amount of work you have to do.

3. Helps you achieve your goals faster

We all set goals and take resolutions, but down the line more than 95% of the people just forget about their goals and start living their routine life.

Have you been in such a situation? Why this happens?

The answer is simple. Not everyone who wishes to achieve a goal generally writes them down on a sheet of paper and plans the action steps to achieve them. Go through this article to know how to plan your goals.

After planning your goals, write down the tasks you have to do every day to achieve this goal. Now that your to-do list is ready all you have to do is start taking action.

This way your to-do list actually helps you achieve your goals faster and keep a track on your progress.

The ‘what and why’ should you make a to-do list is clear. Now let’s see how to write a to-do list.

Steps to write a to-do list:

1. Keep your to-do list size small and doable

Now the most common myth and mistake most people make is dump everything they have to do in their list. Some even write their goals and projects in the list that had to be ticked in a day.

There is only 24 hours in a day and there can be only a few things done in that time. Choose your tasks wisely according to priority. Do not write a long list. Note down the main things you need to work on that particular day and start taking action.

2. Be specific with your tasks

The tasks in your to-do list should be in a way that you get tempted to take the action. Avoid writing vague tasks like ‘read’. Now when you see a task like this written, you next step will be think what should you read, a book or magazine or blog article. Then you will be confused fixing the time to read it. There are too many unanswered questions and that is the last thing you want from your to-do list.

Your to-do list should contain specific and precise tasks so you can immediately start taking action on it and tick it off. Instead of ‘read’, write ‘Read – The Becoming Book by Michelle Obama – 30 minutes.’ Now when you see this list you will immediately start reading as everything is clear here.

Another example: Say you want to call John from sales department to get a report so you can complete your work, instead of writing ‘get report’, try writing ‘Call John from Sales Dept. – Regarding Sales Report – Ph. No. – 10 minutes.’ Now including the number will ensure you don’t get distracted by your mobile phone in between work and you can call John and get to the point straight away without having any distractions.

3. Time block the tasks

Always time block the task. As you can see in the previous example, it is easy to get distracted and start talking to John if he is your friend. But you have work to complete and you can’t afford to do that. So writing how many minutes approximately will the call take place, will really help you cut small talks and get straight to the point. This will also help in saving a lot of time.

So, making an effective to-do list is not really difficult. All you need is a little bit of practice and lot of self-discipline. I hope this article helped you in drafting your effective to-do list. I can't wait for you to start working on your goals and achieve them.

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See you guys next week with another interesting article,

Until then, Take care,

Bubye.