Hello Reader,

You can get the most out of the day if you plan ahead.

You will manage your time more efficiently. You can get more done and are less likely to forget tasks or become sidetracked. Planning ahead will also help you decrease stress and make you feel more in control.

A to-do list is the best technique to plan and organize your day.

The best way to organize your day is to make a to-do list and block time in your calendar. A to-do list is the best way to bring focus to your day. It will make you task-oriented, and you will be able to finish much more than you typically accomplish. It will also help you avoid distractions throughout the day and the temptation to sidetrack your goals.

Unfortunately, many people don’t plan their day. Instead, they waste time and become reactive to events. They frequently miss appointments, are late to meetings, and forget important things.

Don’t worry; I will explain how you can overcome all these problems!

Let’s dive into the planning steps.

Step 1: Pick a specific time to make your daily to-do list

Picking a particular time is essential to build your daily planning habit.

There are many strategies you could use to pick a specific time. Many successful people plan their next day before they go to bed. They also use this time to reflect on what happened that day and what they could have done differently. They celebrate accomplishments daily and account for improvements.

Alternatively, you could plan your day in the morning.

My friend Claudia make a plan for the whole week on Sunday. This is a compelling planning method but only works for people who have developed their priorities, routines, habits and systems.

Planning your day the night before will be the best. This will allow you to sleep on the next day’s ideas and be mentally prepared to concur the day when you wake up.

Step 2: Make your to-do list for the day.

To make a holistic to-do list for the day, look at your office calendar, personal calendar, daily activities, task list from yesterday, and project list. Most people do it wrong and make a to-do list for only their office work.

What goes into your daily plan

1. Daily routine activities
2. Things to do for your office work
3. Personal tasks and errands
4. Task-related to your current projects

Spend 15–30 minutes planning your day, deciding your priorities and focus.

By determining your intentions upfront, you can decide on things life throws at you during the day. It will be easy for you to compare the top items on your to-do list with the new items to decide whether to change your direction or stay with the original plan.

Much more straightforward compared to when you have no priority for the day.

When you have no priority for the day, you will encounter everything as a priority and constantly decide through the day what to do and what is essential. Sometimes waste precious time on less-priority items.

So be careful and plan.

Step 3: Pick the top three tasks of the day

Do you have too many things on your to-do list?

Most people will add too many things to their to-do lists. I used to make this mistake, but recently I changed my strategy to pick the top 3 tasks for the day. Your goal will be to finish two or all three of these tasks. Everything else will be okay to move to the next day if you don’t finish them.

It is harder to cut your to-do list to only items you could realistically do in one day.

There is so much emotion around each of those tasks. So instead of spending mental energy on cutting tasks, pick the top 3 tasks for the day.

Step 4: Schedule your top 3 items on your calendar.

The next step is to pick a time for your top 3 items and schedule it on your calendar.

I have made a to-do list for my entire life, but recently, I started scheduling items in my to-do list for a specific time during the day. It does two things: you get to commit yourself to a task and time; second, you can visualize your day and things you could accomplish in the available time.

Step 5: Now follow the plan throughout the day

By doing these steps, you will be ahead of thousands of other people who face life daily without a plan.

Now you have a roadmap for the day that you can follow during the day and compare new items with your plan. Sticking to your schedule and not getting distracted would be best.

Your most crucial goal will be to accomplish your top 3 tasks.

You can use several strategies to accomplish your top 3 items. I like the Pomodoro technique, in which you set a timer for 25 or 50 minutes and work on a task with no distractions. When the alarm sounds, take a 5 or 10-minute break. Repeat the process for your top 3 jobs.

I suggest only doing 2 or 3 Pomodoro a day.

Bonus: What tool to use to make your to-do list?

There are many incredible tools you could use to make your to-do list.

I have used Things 3, Todoist, Nirvanahq, Asana, Jira, Trello, TickTick, and Any. do Remember the milk, Omni Focus, Google Task, ClickUp, and a physical notebook. They all are excellent and offers their unique selling point.

You will have to try a few to see which matches your working style.

Start with a physical notebook if you are new to a to-do list.

Making a to-do list in a physical notebook has its advantages. Writing makes a connection with the brain. Writing by hand increases neural activity in certain sections of the brain. You will also get satisfaction every time you cross an item after completing it.

If you are comfortable using a do-to-list app, I recommend using Todoiest. It is one of the best apps for new and advanced users.

That's a wrap

I hope this article will encourage you to start taking control of your days and creating momentum in your life.

You can change your life one day at a time.

I promise you will achieve much more than you think and make tremendous progress.

If you like this newsletter, I’m sure you’ll love my tweets. Please follow me on 👉 Twitter @AuthorVinod. I write about career growth, goal-setting, productivity, gadgets & books.

Your friend
Vinod

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