A to-do list is a powerful tool, one that can answer all your problems or be the total pain of your life. Used incorrectly, they can create stress, yet the correct way to use a to-do list can give you feelings of accomplishment and pride.

The art of creating a productive to-do list will allow you to have a sense of accomplishment and fulfilment in your life. If you are a list lover, then you will love the system I have created that meets my current needs.

How to create a daily to-do list

How you create your daily to-do list is vital from an organizing standpoint then you should never feel that you are behind in the jobs that you need to complete.

But getting the balance right is the most difficult part of creating the to-do list; you don’t want too many items on the daily list, because this can cause frustration when you never get to the end. But on the other hand, too few could mean wasting valuable time.

Getting the balance right is going to mean that you are up-to-date with all the tasks and knowing that you have them planned into your schedule, will help keep you on track.

What is the right balance

This is going to depend on your needs and what time you have left to complete your daily to-do list. The maximum that you should have on your list at any one time should be about 5. If you get these completed and you still have the momentum to get more tasks done, then pick one at a time off your master to-do list.

If you plan your day through a diary or a planner, it is a great way to list the few tasks that you need to complete in there and it will keep you away from looking at the master list. If you don’t get time to complete your to-do list, don’t be afraid to move the outstanding item to another day.

The master to-do list

This list is what you use to control your daily to-do list; it is a way to list all the jobs that you need to get done. If you just used this list, it can be quite daunting to see a lot of different tasks, which is why it is great to jot down the few that you need to do each day.

I use a spreadsheet to create my master to-do list. Each week I have the tasks that I need to complete. But, by saving this in the cloud, my family are able to access the master-to-do list if I am not about. They can then see the jobs that are still outstanding and they can work towards completing my weekly master to-do list. This saves me from having to ask because it is always available for them to see.

It is possible to use the master to-do list on a piece of paper and this can work out fine, but it does mean that it can add to the paper clutter. It takes just one member of your home to file it incorrectly and it is lost.

The daily to-do list and my master to-do list gives me control over my home and the tasks that I need to plan for. This system allows me to add tasks that I think of months in advance knowing that they won’t get forgotten. For example, I like to stain my wooden fencing each year and so this is added into the master to-do list each year under the appropriate month, according to when I last stained that item.

This will help you take control and organize your life without realizing it.