Four simple ways to manage your to-do lists and tasks

As I’ve worked with multiple clients, a common thread is that the most overwhelmed folks have challenges that typically boil down to time management, prioritization and the sheer number of different activities and responsibilities one has.

1. Don’t over-complicate it.

We’ve talked about this before, but it bears repeating. This isn’t rocket science. You don’t need fancy systems, or expensive tools or some elusive solution. You simply need to focus and take action.

2. Brain dump everything in ONE place that you’ll go to often.

Note: It really doesn’t matter where, as long as it is consistently the same place (some ideas: Evernote, a physical piece of paper, a Word doc in Dropbox). A brain dump is writing down anything and everything you can think of on a topic. You’re “dumping” all your thoughts on paper so you don’t have to try to remember them. This can look like a really rough to-do list, notes, key phrases or whatever form works for you.

3. Every morning, pick the top THREE things that you need to accomplish that day (big or small).

The prioritization of these is the kicker, and where choosing to working ON your business in addition to the daily demands IN your business becomes critical. What will move the business forward the most today vs what is busy work that consumes too much time if you aren’t laser-focused?

4. Do not work on anything else until your Daily 3 is completed.

If something doesn’t get done, it goes on tomorrow’s list. If you finish the three and have work day left, do another review and select another three items.

What is your biggest challenge when it comes to time management?