You Can Do It Too: Nailing the To-Do List

I was incredibly productive today, absolutely nailed my to-do list. This is the time of year when our minds turn to goals, resolutions, and other grandiose planning strategies. Follow my methods, Young Grasshopper, and productive, you can be. (A lot of Star Wars excitement up in this house this holiday season.)

Effective goal-setting is a matter of priorities, resources and alignment of opportunities. But mostly, it’s all about the list, baby…  This isn’t brain surgery, or rocket science, or even binge-watching HGTV. (Is addiction to “Tiny House” a thing? Cause I’m a little worried…)

Don’t believe me? Well, check it out. Writing a blog post wasn’t even ON my to-do list today, but I’ve been so productive I’m still doing it, and now I can add it to the to-do list JUST so I can check it off. Oh, yeah, that feels good. Don’t tell me you don’t do it too, you know you do.

Curious? Intrigued? Sick of waiting for the point? Here’s today’s to-do list,  read it and be amazed:

1. Sleep in – Done.
2. Stay in pajamas all day – Done.
3. Eat ridiculous amounts of Christmas treats. Balance with mandarin oranges and popcorn. Repeat – Done. And then some.
4. Read a book. A real book, with chapters and without pictures or People Magazine columns anywhere – Done. (The Bone Labyrinth by James Rollins, beginning to end. Great fun in the style of “National Treasure” or “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, and equally believable.)
5. Ignore the disaster that is post-Christmas chaos for one or two more days – so far so good, although I did have to clear a path through gift and toy detritus from my reading perch to the kitchen. But that was all in service to #3.
6. Randomly demand throughout the day that my other family members “go eat some protein, enough sugar already!” I mean, #3 is on MY list, they should make their own  – Done.

Impressed? I am, and also happy and relaxed (and possibly high on sugar, but that’s for another day). After days weeks a couple of months being incredibly focused on the needs of others up to and through the Christmas holiday, today was all about me. You know what? It felt good.

Did reading this list leave you wistful, snarky, or even a little angry? Then do yourself a favor and adopt it as your own one day this week. Go on, you deserve it!

Oh, yeah:

7. Write a blog post, even though it’s been a really, really long time

– Check and Done!