2 min read
How to use a Todo-list
A todo is something you want to:
- â ...do
- ðĢ ...say
- ð ...think about
# It should be easy to add to
"Hey Siri, remind me to do the thing".
However you access your todos-list, make it easy to reach for. Reduce the
friction of adding items. If you can look something up, no need to make it
part of the description of your todo.
# Set an alarm to look at it
A cheap alarm clock with a "todos" post-it note stuck to it, or some equivalent.
You don't have to clear the todo-list, just review it. "Reviewing" means:
- â° Note tasks that will take around 5 minutes to do
- â Try and do 1 of them now
Anything that takes more than 5 minutes to do is too big.
Think of a smaller todo that leads toward the bigger one getting started. You
don't have to do it, just add it, whether it takes 5 minutes or not.
In doing so you will have not only reviewed your list, but refined it too.
# Don't complicate it
- ð Record
- ð Review
- ð Do
Add items to the todo-list throughout the day. Look at it when your alarm goes off.
Yes, there are things that take longer than 5 minutes. But don't bump the time up. The point of your todo-list is to feel small and unintimidating so that it's easier, over time, to clear a pathway in your head towards developing an itch or compulsion to do the longer tasks.
If that doesn't happen, no problem. Refine until you get a task that's 5 minutes long.
Do not punish yourself for not checking-off tasks on the todo-list. Even if you
only refine what's on there, this is still valuable to your future self.
# What are the benefits of a todo list?
# What about my calendar?
A todo is a calendar entry with a single agenda item on it.
A calendar event is a todo-list you want to get through by a particular datetime.
8 Sep, 2022