It can be tough to accomplish some tasks if nobody forces you to. But what kind of things would I want to accomplish that doesn’t have an impact on somebody else? Anything that makes YOU happy or that you consider important. Unlike with your job and your other responsabilities, no one is going to put pressure on you to reach your life goals but yourself.
I’m the first one to start watching TV, Youtube videos or scrolling on Twitter or Instagram when I have nothing to do. Yet I have tons of projects in mind that I could work on instead of wasting my time. I had to find ways of wasting less time and actually do something with my life. For me, the most effective way I found up to now was to make todo lists of what I have to accomplish. I use lists for my daily chores, for my projects and even for my goals for the next 10 years. No matter what you decide to use you lists for, it stays rather similar. It’s just a list after all.
For my daily chores list, I usually write it the night before, so when I wake up in the morning, I already know what I have to do. For other lists, it’s more of an incremental process, I add things in it when I think about them.
But what do I write on this list? I write everything that I want done, and personally, I prefer having a lot of small tasks rather than just a few big ones, it feels less like a mountain and it gives me more satisfaction. I feel better doing 10 smalls task than 3 big ones. Every activity that you want to do deserves its place on the list, even if it’s something more abstract or creative. For example, I have trouble taking time to create music, so when I write it as a task on my list, it helps me devote time to it, even if it’s hard to predict how it will really turn out (inspiration is hard to get on demand). So if you plan on doing the laundry, write it on the list, if you want to write a new article on your blog, write it on the list, if you want to do some meditation, write it on the list too.
Here’s an example of what my list can look like:
- Laundry
- Write blog article
- Read article about <insert subject here>
- Go to the gym
- Take dentist appointment
- Deposit paycheck
- Draw a comic
- Water plants
The list format doesn’t matter much, as long as you can easily understand it and that you can also easily have access to it. I use text files, spreadsheets (Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice Calc, etc), the memo application on my cellphone, post-its and notepads. I won’t recommend any tool in particular because everyone has their own tastes and experiences, so just take the one(s) you like/know best to suit your needs. There is probably also a few websites that can help you with this task, although I personally don’t use any.
At last, the list itself doesn’t force you to do anything, having a list rotting on your desk won’t change anything in your life unless you take a look at it and actually work to check what’s written on it. Everybody is different so it may work or not for you, but if you’re like me, having a clear list is a lot better than having hundreds of mixed ideas in my head. Try it out and see if it works for you!