A Successful List Means Profit Increase
If you're like me, when the moment arises you have a really hard time making a list. I'm more of the organized kind of person. But this article is for those who share my difficulty and need help in that area.
We'll explore why it's important to make lists, how to work with your natural inclinations and organize your lists better, as well as some other tools to help you get your life together!
So if you're currently feeling less than prepared because nothing is getting done or if you're feeling like everything will be chaotic until it's done... STOP! It's time to learn how to make a list.
In my opinion, it's a skill that we all have, but some of us never use it because we don't know how. With a little effort, you can become amazing at developing and working with lists!
I know it sounds super simple but sometimes the simplest things are the hardest to do. So let this be an easy attempt at helping you feel more organized and prepared no matter what life throws your way!
What is a list? In short, it's a tool that helps us manage our time and resources. They can be for anything really; shopping lists, to-do lists, checklist forms, etc.
There are so many tools for helping you manage time and resources but the first and most important tool is a simple list. It's the way in which we'll be training ourselves in this article.
So why make a list? If you think about our lives it's pretty obvious that some things need to be on our daily to-do lists and some things don't need to be there at all. There are also some things that are needed but they're not mandatory.
For example, I know that if I want to eat dinner tonight (and breakfast and lunch tomorrow) that I need to buy groceries today. There's no way around it. It's something that I need. But there are other things on my list that don't need to be done today because there are other days for them.
If we want to get really specific, let's look at this more closely... If you're like me, on Tuesdays you're going to go shopping for Thursday's dinner, so your list will include all the ingredients you'll need for that meal.
But if you're only making that meal one time, you can make just enough of it to last one day. After this time your list should go away.
You can use a grocery store list or a list form to manage your list, but often I like to make my lists by hand. Easier for me to see what's there and how long I have until it's gone.
You can see how this all makes sense, right? We don't need to do everything all the time. We need to prioritize and be realistic about what we're doing.
This is especially important if you're living alone, because it's too easy to not get things done! That never helps in the end!
Another reason why you should make lists is because they're very easy to access. They can be made out at home on your own time and they have your handwriting on them. They're a great way of keeping track of lots of things in your life without having a ton of paper laying around. (I know from experience)
Lists are also great for tracking your habits and checking off goals. Plus, it's a lot of fun! I mean, really... who would have thought that something as simple as writing down what you need to do could be so much fun?
Some people think lists are annoying, but the truth is that making a list is a positive action. When we make lists we're working with our natural inclinations. We're giving ourselves help in order to accomplish something. Making lists is an act of gratitude! (more on this below)
So here's the big question... What if you don't want to make lists? When I think about that question, I often wonder why someone might NOT want to make a list. Is it so hard or time consuming?
In my opinion, making a list is easy! But it's one of those things that people avoid because they don't know how to use it effectively. Things seem more complicated than they are and they're scared that they won't get everything done.
I'm going to use this article to help you learn how to use lists in the way that works best for you. Now I know that a lot of you will be reading this and saying 'Okay, well I hate lists, so can we not talk about them?' I'm sure that some of you might have some good ideas on how to manage your list making or might not have any desire at all. If that's the case, just skip this section!
You don't have to make a list every single day for everything. You don't even need to make a grocery list ever! As much as we'd like it sometimes, it doesn't work that way. So don't force yourself to make one!
I've actually come up with a list of times when it's better not to make a list...
If you're at the grocery store, don't take out your list! It's not the time for that! This is the only time that I can think of where it might be okay not to have your list because you're in a public place and they have everything there. You can just ask an employee if you need help finding something. (If in doubt, do something else) If you have an alarm clock and set it to wake you up then don't use a list.
Conclusion
The best way I can think of to summarize this article is that you need to stop waiting for things to get better in life. You're either going to get all your lists done or you're not. It's time to start getting organized!
I have a few more tips and tricks for getting your lists done before we say goodbye, but first let me leave you with two great quotes: "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." ~ Eleanor Roosevelt "You become what you think about most of the time.