The Power Of A Master List

I know you are scared. You have a bazillion things to accomplish. You’ve tried to-do lists before, and they don’t work. You write everything down and get more overwhelmed. You don’t know which thing you should start with. And cleaning the kitchen is a HUGE task; how do you even accomplish it?

It’s a challenge, and I was in the same boat. I was overwhelmed with the never-ending to-do list. More things get added daily than get taken off. I even have to keep track of what the kids have to do every day. It’s a never-ending battle that everyone deals with. But I found a solution. At least for me, it works. I pray it will work for you, too.

A master list was my game-changer. I first heard about it in CBT sessions. You write everything that needs to be done and rate them in the order of importance. You put an A on what must be done as soon as possible. Limit your A to about four items. B by the things that are important but can wait another day. C by things that need to be completed in the week.

As the days progress, you will mark things off and move items up in their A, B, and C categories. You may add something to the list, changing everything’s ranking. But you are in control.

The best part is you need a pen and paper to make this happen. You don’t need a fancy planner or notebook. I did, however, use a notebook for my master list.

Little did I know, I was already implementing this when it came up in my CBT sessions. I used an undated planner that asked for your goals weekly and daily. The best part is that it’s undated, so if I skipped a week, it didn’t matter; I could still use the planner.

I would write out my to-do list for the week. Go to the gym for three days. Do school with the kids for four days. Music lessons, therapy, and occupational therapy all made the list. My work items made the list, too. I then chose the things I had to get done as my goals. Educating my kids is the priority. Therapy for my kids is next, then items for work and around the house. I would take the goals list and divide it up for the week. I know what days our appointments are on and what days school is on. So that is the easy part. But what about the days I need to work on the business? I would scatter that list throughout the week. And voila! My priorities are listed below.

My planner also has a spot for daily tasks. You know, laundry, dishes, feeding the animals, feeding the kids. The stuff you do daily so that you can mark it off, too. I sometimes list things here that I want to get a jump on. And a spot for tracking habits.

I break down my more significant tasks, such as deep cleaning the kitchen. I have everything I have to do written out. Unload the dishwasher, bleach the sink, wipe down the counters, clean the oven, and wipe down the stove. It’s all written out, so I can tackle it task by task.

If you are wondering, this is the Clever Fox Update Daily Planner. It comes in all kinds of colors. You can see it here. (I don’t get anything if you purchase through this link.) But using it has helped me greatly.

Remember, you can make your master list with pen and paper and don’t need a fancy planner. Or you can get a planner and keep track of your progress. I love looking back and seeing how far I have come.