To Do Lists
Y’all. We have so. much. to. manage.
On our computers alone, in addition to actually working on photos, we have emails to answer, websites to design and manage, copy to write, marketing collateral to produce, social media posts to compose, taxes to pay, financial records to keep, prints to order, bills to pay, software and subscriptions to keep updated… And off of our computers, aside from actually taking photos, we have gear to clean and get serviced, props to organize, offices to keep tidy, things to mail, locations to scout, hard drives to keep track of, and did I mention offices to keep tidy…
If we sit down and look at EVERYTHING AT ONCE that we have to do as we FLY SOLO operating our businesses, it can be crippling. If I don’t have a prioritized To-Do list, when I sit down to “work” I get extremely overwhelmed and can find myself switching from task to task and getting distracted and having a lot of programs open with things I’m actively working on, but nothing that I am actively FOCUSED on.
Can you relate?
For me, the only solution for disorganized task management is:
1. Prioritizing a weekly “Must Do” list
2. Actually blocking my time when I do leave my personal life to “go to work”
If you do already keep a written To-Do list, would you consider changing up the way you do it, and try my way for one month?
A To-Do List Julie’s Way:
Make a new list every week (not a new list every day, and not a long list that goes on and on forever)….
Use two categories: Must Do and Looking Ahead. Separate things you absolutely need to check off this week, and things that you simply need to write down so that you don’t forget about them, and so that you can put them in the ‘must do’ list for a later week.
I make my written To-Do list every Sunday night for the following work week.
My prior week’s list is on the prior page in my notebook, so I can easily move things over from one week to the next.
When I sit down to work on Monday, I don’t have an existential crisis asking myself ‘what should I do right now since I can finally get some work done???’ — I just simply pick one thing from my list…. and I work on it…. and I don’t work on anything else while I say I’m going to be working on that one thing.
And amazingly, I don’t get too distracted. And I don't find myself getting lost in things that aren't a priority.
If you don’t already keep a written To-Do list at your desk, will you try it for one month?!?! And if you have not already, make sure you download my FREE Time Blocking Guide!
I hope this was helpful!
-Julie