How To Keep Everything Straight

Whenever I visit my parents I love going through my old boxes of memorabilia and photos. I find notes I passed in middle school, love letters to my latest crush, and polaroids of my girl posse in legwarmers and bandanas.

I also skim through my notebook/journal from my early 20’s when I lived in a tiny apartment in NYC.

My to-do list was so simple back then.

  • Pay rent.
  • Plan birthday at a fabulous restaurant.
  • Call nana.

And then I “grew up,” got married, embarked on a real career, and started a fam.

ENTER my new list: (or rather 72 of them!)

  • Pay mortgage.
  • Make all the dentist appointments.
  • Complete client presentation.
  • Create holiday cards.
  • Finalize bathroom renovations.
  • Research prospect list.
  • Review bills.
  • Cook dinner.
  • Pay loans.
  • Do laundry.
  • Read proposals.
  • Respond to emails.
  • Do dishes.
  • Text client.
  • Find keys.
  • Schedule teacher conferences.
  • Clean vents.

And I think that was just on Monday!

I used to go into full-on anxiety when I looked at my never-ending to-dos.

Or, I wouldn’t even make lists because just thinking about everything completely stressed me out.

So things would get procrastinated, fall through the cracks, or in some cases…never happen at all.

Maybe you can relate to little time and too much to do?

After studying this stuff for a long time I came up with THE simplest process to keep it all straight, prioritize, and get the important stuff done.

There IS a system that works and it goes like this:

#1: Break down everything on your list into baby steps

#2: Add time estimates to each task

#3: Plan them out on your calendar

It’s not rocket science but it’s not as easy as it seems either.

You might start this process but have questions as I used to like:

  • How do I break down my tasks?
  • How do I know how much time each one takes?
  • How do I prioritize everything in my 7 notebooks and 10 sticky notes?
  • When do I plan time for the things that I never get time for? (exercising, organizing my life, relaxing!)
  • How do I stop procrastinating things I know I should be doing?
  • And WHY do I keep putting them off?
  • Where do I make time when my life is already full?
  • Why do I feel like I don’t get anything done even though I’m constantly on the move?
  • How can I focus when I’m always getting interrupted?
  • I’d love to help you answer your q’s so you wake up with a “here’s how things are gonna go today” plan.

So you stop running by the seat of your pants.

So you stop reacting to life as it’s thrown at you.

And so you stop wondering “how come I’m so busy but always feel behind?”

My upcoming class, Create the Perfect To-Do List And Plan Your Week Like A Boss, will help you finally learn to take control of your tasks and time.

So you can keep everything straight too.

If you haven’t signed up yet, do it here. (The price goes up soon).

If you have, yay and tell me this: do you sometimes miss when life was simpler too?

Xo,

Mridu

ps –  This is so rando but, one of the things I found in my memorabilia box was a lock diary from 4th grade. But I can’t open it because I don’t have the key. I want to break it open but it feels like I’m prying into someone’s personal life. Except that this person is me! Is this totally weird or what??

Mridu Parikh

I help time-strapped go-getters who are overwhelmed by their demands and distractions, get more time and feel less stressed. I'm Mridu Parikh, Productivity Coach, Consultant, & Author. If you want to focus your time and energy on what matters most, you've come to the right place.

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