Each day determine your most important task, the one thing that takes you closer to your most important goal. Do that first.
Or if you can’t do that first because it’s scheduled at a specific time, tackle your second most important task. Continue to do the next most important task throughout your day. At the end of the day, you’ll feel great — less stressed, more confident and more successful.
She’s Making A List & Checking It Twice
Of course, it’s a bit easier if you make a list. No, not a whose naughty or nice list (That list is in our heads). Make an actual task list for the day.
By making a list, either with paper and pen or digitally, we free up more brain energy for solving problems and making better decisions. (Like what the naughty and nice are getting.) It also increases our available willpower, helping us stay focused and on track.
But Is It Really An Important Goal or Task?
Our important goals are tied to our personal list of what we want in our lives — and want to achieve. If you feel it’s something you “should” do instead of wanting to do, that’s a big clue that it isn’t something that you value — it’s something imposed by someone else. Whose telling you that you must do this? Is it peer pressure? Or that tiny little voice inside your head? (And whose voice is that anyway?) Or your boss?
If you believe you really, really need to do the task, even if you don’t want to do it, look for a way to reframe the task. Is it tied to something you do value, like strengthening your friendships or supporting your family? Is there some part of it you actually enjoy? Focus on what connects to your true values and tie it to the part you don’t care for.
Or maybe you can delegate the part you dislike. (Would Tyler trade tasks with you?) Is there an aspect you can use to build a skill you want or need to pursue your own goals? Can you gamify the task so that completion feels like a win (with an appropriate reward)? Try different techniques to find what works for you.
Make your holiday season a little brighter by concentrating on what matters — and what matters to you!
