Why I'll Never Go Without a To-Do List Again

Make the bed. Check. Fold the laundry. Check. Go grocery shopping. Check. As a slightly neurotic and highly organized woman, I live for to-do lists. I use them on my phone, in Trello, on post-it notes, and even in email drafts. I wasn't hyperbolizing when I said I'm neurotic. But I'm also likely one of the most productive people you know (or don't know).

I even have a routine for creating my to-do lists!

1. Morning to-do lists. I wake up, do my morning hygiene routine, take the dog out, and sit down at my desk to write my to-dos for the day. And yes, this includes chores like making the bed and vacuuming. But it also has work tasks for the day, any errands I have to run, gym and appointment reminders, and more. You can call me crazy now.

2. Mid-day check-ins. I keep my list visible at all times and throughout the day, either cross things off (and revel in how good it feels to get shit done) or plan a strategy to finish the rest of my tasks. I don't always get my list done—sometimes I only get the priority items done, but that's good enough for me. I can always roll lower priority items to the next day if necessary.

3. On-the-go lists. Random things pop into my head all day, especially because I am insanely forgetful. When this happens, I pull out my phone and create a digital to-do list. Once I'm home, I merge my lists.

You might think it's crazy to make to-do lists for everyday tasks like making the bed, doing the dishes, or running errands. And you may be right. But for me, to-do lists turn me into a productivity powerhouse.

When I don't have them, I slowly crumble. And I know this because I did an accidental experiment where I didn't use to-do lists at all for about a month.

My accidental task-free experiment

Life gets crazy, things slip through the cracks, and even well-oiled machines break down.

Overwhelmed with work, freelance projects, intense workouts, my relationship, and raising a new puppy, I stopped creating to-do lists. Getting through the day was challenging enough—I didn't need to add a seemingly unsurmountable list on top of that. So, I didn't.

The result? Nothing got done. I didn't work out. I didn't make the bed, do the dishes, the laundry, or any other household chores (thank god for my bomb-ass partner who kept our home in order).

It's not that I need a list to do everyday chores. But when I don't have any sense of direction for how my day looks, I can't seem to get started. And I have a feeling a lot of you are the same way. I silently, sometimes subconsciously, told myself, "There's too much to do, and I don't know where to start, so I just won't start at all." Bad idea.

Not only did it put immense pressure on my saint of a partner, but it also affected my tasks outside of the home. I stopped working out. I stopped writing. I stopped taking care of myself the way I should. Everything came to a halt. And I no longer got the satisfaction of completing stuff.

Struggling to get shit done?

If you're anything like me—or maybe you're my polar opposite—and enjoy ticking things off your list while getting your to-dos done, find you some paper, an app, or even email drafts and start putting your tasks to paper.

Start small with only the things that need to get done today. It's not the end of the world if you don't clean your bathroom for a day or two. It could very well be a different story if you don't get your part of a team project done on time. Prioritize what's most important.

And don't forget the best part: that euphoric sigh of relief every time you cross an item off or cross every item off your list.