source: edenpictures
There are some great posts in the archives of Life Your Way that don’t get much attention anymore. This week, I’ll be sharing some of my favorites. Whether you’ve been around since the beginning or are a new reader, I think you’ll enjoy them!
Tsh at Simple Mom shared a great time management tip a couple of weeks ago: Start Your Day by Eating a Frog. While the title may be silly, the premise is simple and valuable – if you start your day by doing that thing that you most dread, everything else will seem easy.
While I agree with her in theory, sometimes I find that what overwhelms me is not one gigantic thing that I’m dreading but the tons of tiny things on my to-do list that are trying to get my attention. If I’m being completely honest, it’s not having a big project in front of me that eats my productivity; it’s the little things.
My mom likes to switch up the old cliche and say that I can’t see the trees through the forest because I get so overwhelmed by my to-do list as a whole that I don’t know where to start, and it’s been known to paralyze me to the point where I get nothing done.
In these situations, I’ve learned that the best solution is to turn my to-do list upside down and start knocking out as many tiny things as I can. The same holds true whether I’m overwhelmed by my blog to-do list, by a messy house after a week of sick kids or by preparations for one of my kid’s birthday parties.
For me, knocking out the tiny things gives me a sense of accomplishment and visually makes my to-do list shorter, thereby making it less overwhelming and easier to tackle.
What methods do you use for conquering your to-do list? Do you often get overwhelmed by your to-do list as a whole, or is it the big “frogs” that stop you in your tracks?
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Mandi Ehman is the founder and publisher behind Life…Your Way and the co-author of All in Good Time, as well as a wife and the homeschooling mom to four beautiful girls. She lives with her family on a little slice of heaven in wild, wonderful West Virginia and loves coffee, chocolate, easy meals, beautiful things and minimalist spaces. |
