The Truth About To-Do Lists: Why Productivity Isn’t About Doing It All
chamindu lakshan
Out of the box thinker/YouTubepreneuer/programmer/Wordpress and Wix Designer
The Productivity market is a booming industry. Pushing and convincing everyone you can and should get everything done and if you don’t, you’re a failure. In a world where competition continues to be fierce, who wouldn’t want to be that person who can do it all?
I know I have spent a lifetime trying.
Multi-tasking is a farce
Calling oneself a multitasker is a misleading and, honestly, inaccurate label. I, too, prided myself on my perceived ability to do multiple things at once. I am sure I documented this on my resume at some point.
At some point, I attended courses and started to hear the truth about multi-tasking. I learned that in all my concerted efforts, I was not multitasking. Not in the sense that I thought I was.
When we hear multi-tasking, we think it is the act of doing two or more tasks simultaneously with the same effort and execution. It’s almost funny thinking of an image of what that would look like. I suspect it would look like something out of a Science Fiction film or a cartoon.
The truth is, if you critically reflect on your day–the day you insisted you multi-tasked, it would look nothing like that film. It would look like you, more or less, stopped and started several tasks throughout that day. You likely had extended periods where you were trying to remember where you left off as you alternate.
At the end of the day, all of those tasks not only took you longer than it would if you focused on a single one, but they were mostly likely not executed at the level they would have if each one were a singular focus.
The List
The typical ‘To Do List’ we create for ourselves becomes a purveyor of multitasking, of doing more and more. Eventually, it becomes a source of shame and guilt, telling us we did not do enough or that we failed for the day.
It taunts us with the uncompleted tasks — the ones that are not lined out or checked off. You can almost hear them saying, “Look at you, you could get us done!” Ok, maybe that’s just me and I’m projecting.
You see, it is not the to-do list that is at fault, it is the creator of said list (you and me) who has been misguided or duped into believing not only every possible task or assignment needs to be on the list, but all that each of those listed needs to be completed in a day.
A Turning Point
My former director, in response to my questions about productivity, bought me a book. It was a Productivity planner. It had a hardcover with the word “Productivity” in large, gold, capitalized font and the word “Planner” hidden beneath it in a font about one-fourth size.
It looked fancy and I was excited.
In the end, it was not the appearance of the book that allowed it to get a mention in this piece, but rather the contents and the lesson it taught me.
While the book has many unique features, the one that had a life-changing impact on me is that the book only allows you to list five tasks per day. It also conveys something very significant about each task.
Of these five tasks allotted per daily entry, you are forced to prioritize each of them. There is no blank list allowing you to jot ambitiously down as many random items as you wish; you have to think. Not only think but also make a decision. In that decision lies the truth about the to-do list: you may not get everything done.
And that is expected.
Essentially, the list of five is split up. Items two through five are grouped together, but what excites me most about this planner is item number one. The planner poses a question: if you could only do one thing on that particular day and feel satisfied and proud, what would it be?
There it is, the reality of the to-do list unveiled. Not only should you not put more than five items on your to-do list, but there is a great chance you will only be able to get one of them done. And it’s ok, you were still productive. This list does not taunt you nor serve as a reminder that you are unaccomplished, it both validates you and provides you with a reality check.
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That is what a to-do list should do.
Break it down
Aside from limiting the line items on your to-do list, be more targeted and specific with what you choose to write and I’ll explain why.
Let’s say you are given a deliverable of drafting a PowerPoint presentation by your manager and you both agree to have the draft complete in three days. You go to your to-do list and put Create Draft of PowerPoint presentation as your most important task of the day. You get to day two and you are not done yet and you start freaking out and also feeling unproductive.
You end up having to ask for an extension, spending all night working on the presentation, and ultimately completing the draft in five days. Every day until it was finished, you couldn’t check off that task and felt like you had failed during the four days leading up to the due date.
There are two problems here, one you have an undeserved feeling of failure, and, two you missed a step that could have prevented the first problem.
Large tasks (or deliverables) must be broken down.
It provides you with clarity on what actually needs to happen to execute the overarching deliverable. It also allows you to provide a more accurate estimate for your completion date.
Using that logic, here is an example of what the tasklist should look like:
In the above example, you see that there are five, time-intensive steps, to execute the final deliverable. Each of those steps could reveal additional tasks. If you have other priorities or important and immediate items that may arise, you may break each step into multi-day tasks allowing for those items to be added to your daily to-do list.
You will be able to visualize that you are, in fact, working towards completing that deliverable and know you are on the right track. Additionally, you can provide a status to your manager and give a more accurate time to complete.
Breaking out a heavy lift task allows you not only to stay focused but allows you to see you are, in fact, being productive.
The takeaway
Popular opinion views productivity as a constant output of tangible items, typically items that make money or more of something. In actuality, productivity is the quality or state of producing something. Of course, a metric must be put on everything so efficiency and effectiveness have been thrown in the description. Either way, the true definition does not mention anything about quantity. In other words, No 10–20 items to-do lists are necessary.
If you are consistently working towards something, you are being productive. Even if you switch tasks, you are being productive.
If there is a concern about quality, that is a different conversation, but understanding a 10 or 20-item to-do list where only 10% was completed does not equate to a lack of productivity.
It is important to create effective to-do lists where the focus is quality. Knowing what are the most important tasks, how each task needs to be broken down, and how much time each will take to complete is the key to being productive.
As a leader, you will have constant interruptions. There is often a fire to put out, especially in unpredictable and technical environments and you want to be available to support your team. Set yourself up for success and understand limitations, not just yours, but that of reality.
So try out this method. I guarantee you’ll feel more accomplished with this more effective to-do list than ever before.