For years, I have relied on the stability and reliability of To-Do lists. Whether I was organizing the items I needed to accomplish, such as household chores and shopping, or carefully constructing chapter-by-chapter notes for editing my newest novel, To Do Lists have always been at my left hand.
In the realm of time management, To-Do Lists are often called task lists. They have been a longstanding tool for productivity. By allowing the list maker to check off a task as soon as it is completed, the To-Do List shows not only what you have accomplished, but also what else there is to tackle.
The To-Do List can be old-school style, written on paper; or in a Personal Information Management system such as a PDA or Daily Planner. To-Do lists serve a simple purpose: they give the list maker a visible set of tasks, chores, or steps to be taken in order to complete any given project or action. Yet, as useful as To-Do Lists can be, sometimes they can overwhelm us.
At the start of 2010, I began my freelance writing career in full force. By mid-January, my never-ending To-Do List encompassed three pages and seemed to grow by the minute. Each day I struggled to check off items, yet the tasks on my list loomed. My motivation lagged and then sputtered out. I had found the curse of To-Do lists. They always reflect that which you have not accomplished but must complete. I was disheartened. The list had beaten me.
After my motivation left me, I abandoned my efforts to complete tasks that were on my list. For days, I puttered, doing nothing from the list and hating myself more each day. My mood soured and my ideas dried up. One evening, I spotted my favorite notepad nearby. I'd removed my list and hidden it from sight so now the pad had a fresh, clean sheet on top. My pen sat beside it, luring me to create a list.
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