Like many of you, I am a HUGE planner and to do list addict. (See this post on how I use my planner(s!) I purchase a new, fancy planner each year, and writing down what I need to do each day is a must. Yet I often write stuff down and don’t get to finish it, which makes me feel like a failure a lot. I see the stuff I didn’t do more than the stuff I did do.
Total downer.
Recently I heard a game changer plan that I have been working on, and it is LIFE CHANGING. (Not dramatic, lol.) Instead of writing down what I have to do in the morning, I wrote down what I did do at night. This switches my routine from an early morning one, to a nightly reminder of what I got done. And I am often surprised! I’ve written before about what a stay at home mom/writer does each day, and it can seem a little mundane and not important when seen from a to do list perspective. Yet when I look back on my day I know I did a ton.
Like the other day, for instance. I woke up at 5:30 and listened to a podcast and did my grateful list and goal work. I got the kids fed and off to school. I went to Crossfit and worked on improving my strength goals. I wrote this blog post. I recorded some content for Insta stories. I posted in my shampoo group online and strategize some posts for the future. I reconnected with my best friend on the phone after a week of phone tag. I took photos for my social media posts. I picked up my car from the dealer. I bought some groceries for dinner. Then I got the kids off the bus and did homework/dinner/bedtime stuff. And finished the day with some meditation. I have specific goals that I work on each day and try to hit the big ones in all areas. Seen from a to do list viewpoint, it can seem silly or “not enough”, but from an overall goal view? I’m killing it.
I love how this simple switch in routine completely energizes me to work on the things I need to do without feeling like I didn’t get things done.
Tell me, do you run on to-do lists? How you think changing your planner routine could energize your life?
P.S. I do keep a master list for the week of items I need to do (call doc, set up appointments, things to remember, etc), and then I fit it in when I can. I am amazed at how much less pressure I feel to conquer the LIST each day, because there isn’t one;)
