How to improve productivity with a to-do list

To-do lists are a common productivity tool. They help us stay focused and make it clear what needs to be done. But there is another, equally important way to maintain efficiency - a list of things to stop doing.

Why classic to-do lists don't work

If you're not very organized and lack motivation, chances are you're trying to work harder and longer. For example, if you are productive for 2 hours every day, then it seems reasonable to increase this interval to 4 or 6 hours. However, this approach is fundamentally wrong.

Once you're already efficient enough, you can't just increase the amount of work. Yes, in the short term you will have more time, but you will also burn out much earlier. For stable progress, you need to use another tactic - stop working.

What is special about the to-do list?

There will be no advice here to check email less often, not to go to social networks or delegate difficult tasks. Of course, all these tricks work, but they do not take into account one important thing, which just helps to get rid of the list of unnecessary cases. Namely, tasks that seem valuable now, but in fact do not help in any way to achieve their goals. Yes, it would be nice to complete these tasks today, but in a month or a year they won't matter.

Let's say you are a freelancer and write texts. Everything seems to be in order: you get good money, you like the work, and the customers are always friendly. However, you decide it's time to end. For the simple reason that freelancing makes you money now, but it will not help you achieve the income you are striving for in the long run. Yes, your decision to stop working may reduce your usual income for the first time, but it will expand your future opportunities.

Most goals come with a very similar to-do list. It includes tasks that help achieve intermediate results, but prevent reaching the next level. Among them may be:

• Work from 9 to 18 if you want to open Own business.
• Read some helpful books.
• Spend time on tasks that can't be scaled. Consulting, for example, is not scalable, but product development is.
• Spend time with friends with whom you have different values.

Most people stop working on their to-do list when they find something better. They stop freelancing when they finally start making a profit from the business. They stop spending time with people they don't care about when they find true friends. But this is the wrong strategy. It may work, but you will move towards the goal much more slowly.

We cannot always immediately and irrevocably exclude something from our lives. And that's okay. However, it is important to get rid of unnecessary things as soon as you have the opportunity to survive a small turbulent period, and not when you find a better option.

How to make a to-do list

Take a close look at your main goals. And then write down the things you are already doing that will help you achieve the results you want. This is your to-do list.

Now write down the actions that get you closer to your goal but never get you to the finish line. This is your to-do list.

Get rid of "mirages" - work that has some apparent value, but does not quench your thirst. Because productivity is not only about understanding what to do, but also about understanding what exactly needs to be stopped.