The real trick to getting things done
The problem isn’t your to-do list app.
How many times have you got yourself organized, set up your systems, and put in the effort to make your to-do list work for you… only to have it all fall apart after a day, a week, or a month?
We need systems in place to support us because, let’s face it… as humans, we are fallible. Life gets busy. Our focus gets pulled in a myriad of directions. We chafe at having to stick to a process. Before you know it, we are bemoaning how unorganized we are, and we start looking for new systems to “fix” us.
Instead, what if we accepted that the problem isn’t that we have the wrong system or that we lack discipline?
Staying on top of things in today’s world is more challenging than it’s ever been. Take a step back and think about everything we are expected to balance in today’s world. We should expect to fail in small ways over and over again. And when we do. the trick is to pick ourselves up and recommit to forward progress.
Think about every meditation you’ve ever done (hoping you’ve tried at least one!) Meditation is all about emptying your mind of thought. When you find a thought popping in your head (as it invariable will) do you throw your hands up in disgust and quit? No. You are coached to acknowledge the thought, let it go, and get back to finding your om.
What if you approached your to-do list this way? Instead of abandoning it at the first (or second, or third) blip, what if you forgave yourself? Maybe even celebrated it as a mini-break necessary to find your reason why and getting motivated again?
Chances are the system you spent a lot of time and energy putting in place in the first place is the right one, and you’ll be that much closer to getting back on top of things.
