Your To-Do List Can't Just Be In Your Head!

Most of my good friends fall into the perfectionist category.  Don't ask me why.  I guess they are somehow attracted to my relaxed attitude about most things that would drive a perfectionist  crazy.  My tupperware is a mess.  My laundry is clean and folded but stuffed here and there.  We have books in every room, stacks and stack of them.  There is yarn on every horizontal surface.  Dust doesn't bother me and order will never reign supreme in any home in which I reside.  Not a possibility.

But, I do have my own manner of organization.  Really!  I am never late for appointments, pay my bills on time, and take care of all the important aspects of life that need to be done in a timely manner.  How?  One way I've discovered is to make a list.  That's a List, with a capital L.

Sometimes the state of my house gets me down.  I'm such a rotten housekeeper!  My house is not dirty, but it is cluttered.  My mind is also cluttered.  It becomes very easy to fall into the trap of doing what's urgent rather than what's important.

Think about that.  Urgent or Important.  Here's an example.  The phone is ringing and the baby is crying.  Which is urgent?  Which is important?  The baby is clearly more important than the phone although I cannot stand to have a phone ring more than 3 rings.  While that may be an extreme example, it's merely used to make my point.

What's on your To-Do List?  If you follow someone like the FlyLady, you have a built in To-do list, hers, which you tune into every day when you get up, get dressed right down to your shoes, and hit the ground running.  Bless the FlyLady.  She sets a standard that is reasonable, rational, and absolutely unattainable by me.  But.....I have learned a couple things from her that work very well for me.

I've written before - more than once - about putting YOURSELF on your To-Do List so that you build your walking/exercising time right into your daily schedule.  But, if you list is in your head - if it's not WRITTEN DOWN - it's not real and you won't do it.  I'm telling you!

For years, when I guess my brain was either more flexible or less cluttered than it is now, I could actually get by with a To-Do List in my head that wasn't written down.  No more!  Especially when I'm trying to include a new activity or deadline in my schedule.  I must have that list in writing, in front of me, carry it around, and mark off each item on it.

So, if you're finding that you still have difficulty making time for yourself - for walking, exercising, relaxing - please write down your To-Do List and put yourself on it.  Put your activities in order of priority.  Note that YOU must not be the last item of business on your list.  You must be near the top - if not at the top.

When the nice FlyLady has you lacing up your shoes every morning, make those walking shoes.  When you pack your lunch for work, put your walking shoes (nicely wrapped) in your lunch bag too.  When you make your list of errands, park in the farthest spot available and double time it through your errands.  When you plan coffee with friends, make it coffee 'to go' and walk around the park with your friend while you sip and catch up.

If you don't write it down, it's unlikely to happen - especially if it's new behavior.  Give yourself the best chance for success.  Make yourself the most important thing on your To-Do list - because you are!



*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.