5 Productivity Questions to Ask About Your Todo List

Your todo list should be your best friend when it comes to your productivity.

It is there to catch your todos, keep your priorities on track, and to remind you later when you have long forgotten a random todo.

Is your todo list helping you get more done? Or do you forget about it until it is too late?

Always Have a Todo List

It is surprising how many people don’t have a formal todo list.

They may have some Post-It notes or random scribbles on a pad of paper, but not an organized list of any kind.

You have to wonder how they even know what they are going to do next. (Hint: Most of them don’t.)

Yet, having a list isn’t a surefire recipe for getting more done. Have you ever written a list, only to find it several days later… still undone?

“Having a todo list isn’t enough, you have to use it regularly.”

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More than writing down your todo list, you have to actively work it.

Here are 5 Questions to Ensure Your To-do List Helps You Get More Done:

1. Do You Have ONE List? – The Power of 1, that is one type of tool for each need. This means one todo list. Not multiple lists spread across multiple places, mediums, and locations.
2. Is Your Todo List Simple? – Your list should be the simplest tool that gets the job done. You don’t need all the bells and whistles. (In fact, paper often trumps technology. ) And it shouldn’t take entering 57 fields to add a todo to your list. Keep your list simple.
3. Do You Like Your List? – This one often catches people off-guard. Yes, you should like using your list. Otherwise, you’ll stop using it. Paper, fine. App, okay. Either way, it’s about whether you will use it. Choose tools you’ll use.
4. Is it Always with You? – Your list has to be with you at all times. It order to remind you of your work and priorities, you need to look at it regularly. If it’s out of sight, it’s out of mind. Whatever format your list, make sure that it can be carried with you. Apps make that easy, as our phones are omnipresent. However, if your list is paper-based, make sure it is portable and travels with you.
5. Is it Actionable? Take a look at your list. Is it filled with actual tasks? Actions that you can actually do. Or is it filled with vague and nondescript project names and thoughts that are just that… thoughts. Make sure that the todos on your list are doable tasks. A good tip is to make sure that each of your task descriptions has a verb in it.

Make Your List Productive

Making sure you keep a todo list is a great first step.

Then, ask yourself if it is really making you more productive. Keep your list present, actionable, and with you ensures that your list can be there when you need it most.

If you do, like your best friend, your todo list will always have your back.

Question: How do you keep your todo list productive? You can leave a comment by clicking here.