Organizing with Lists

I have always loved making lists and I love all things related to lists and planning. In the past year, I have started to be more realistic of the time that I do have, and not over committing to things. It has been so refreshing.

As busy moms, I think we can all utilize a good list. As silly as it may sound, there are ways for our lists to help us even more than we realize.  A simple list can quickly turn into a game changing list for your family with these practical steps.

Make a plan for the week ahead of time.

Sit down over the weekend and make a plan for the week. Look over your calendar for the week and figure out a general plan.

Make a plan for each day the night before.

Things change over the course of a week, so it can be helpful to make a more detailed plan the night before. Typically, I will do this in the evening, and jot down the items I need to get done and sometimes a few things that I would like to get done.  Doing this simple task every evening, makes my mornings run so smoothly.

Split your list into segments.

Start with a morning, afternoon, and evening list. Or you could do hourly if that fits better. Put the different tasks into the different segments so your list is split up and not just one big list.

Highlight the tasks you are focusing on.

When you look at your list, take a highlighter and mark the current tasks. This may not be something that everyone needs to do, but it has been very helpful for me. When I use a marker or highlighter to highlight the current tasks, I am able to visually key in on those tasks. I typically will highlight a couple that I plan to tackle in the next hour or so.

Cross off the tasks using a Sharpie.  

The whole point to make a list is to cross things off right? Using a black Sharpie to cross off the items, seems to help me so much. I don’t know what it is, but it has made a huge difference.

Putting these tips into action will make over your lists and help you accomplish what you are wanting to. Are you ready? 

What tips would you add to this?

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