It's Sunday Night, My Weekend "To-Do" List is still Unfinished!

​Monday morning driving to work is the worst 30 minutes of the week.  I am not only haunted by the onslaught of work challenges that I so happily ignored throughout the weekend but I also get hit heavily with guilt for all of the personal “to-do” tasks that I managed to put off over the weekend.  By the time my car is parked at the office I am already beyond stressed out.  There is no worse feeling (for an over-planner) than not achieving what you set out to do.

I’ve found that a great solution to this constant need for tasks to be completed is by daily planning.  Every night before bed I take a look at my personal to-do list and nab 2 that I want to accomplish the next day.  I set my alarm early enough to allocate enough time to get both of those tasks done.  This way, by the time I leave the house in the morning, once I get to work I have already accomplished something.  

This is similar to the army mentality of making your bed every morning.  The idea that you should start every day with a task that you have committed to completing.  The sense of accomplishment and ability will carry with you throughout the day.  If nothing else gets done, at least that was.

Sometimes my daily task will be going to the post office, which is never open prior to work.  In that scenario I take a look at my work schedule for the day and complete whatever was planned for mid-day, at home prior to work starting, so that mid-day I can drive to the post office.  It sometimes becomes a game of give and take.  

Don’t beat yourself up if you missed a to-do.  Just focus on one or two a day, make them the priority and slowly you will watch your list become less of a stress-causing-nightmare and more as a list of accomplishments.