How to increase your productivity with the use of lists

Many people find it difficult to write down what they have to do. This task can sometimes be seen as redundant. Why is it necessary to write the tasks and then do them? Wouldn't it be more efficient to get down to work and do it right away??

Experience shows that when you only have to do one thing, then you should do it when before. However, if there are several things you have pending, it will work better if you have a list at hand..

There are many systems and types of lists because not everyone works the same. The method that we are going to tell you next will help you increase your productivity and get a large number of tasks ahead..

Materials and instructions for use

First you need a folio. Surely you have a forgotten notebook at home or half-used. Well, tear off a sheet and divide it into 9 grids as similar as possible. Then you cut each of these grids until you have 9 pieces of paper.

Why 9 pieces of paper?

Experience has shown us that the size of one of these pieces is enough to summarize in a schematic way the tasks that we must carry out the next day..

For example, if you have to write an email to X to remind him of Y, you will only write on one line "Write e-mail to X to remind him of Y". No need to waste time adding more details than you would need a larger piece of paper. Remember that with this system we intend to increase productivity, therefore everything that is to write a few more words is completely unnecessary.

In addition, this size has the ideal proportions so that you can store it comfortably in your trouser pocket or in your purse without the need to fold it..

If instead of using a normal folio you use a cardboard style one, the result is better because the paper will have more consistency. Even if you feel creative you can use cards of different colors.

The second thing you need is a pen or marker. It can be black, blue, green, from the classic bic pens to more modern ones. And that's it. That's all you need.

You probably think that there are hundreds of applications much more interesting and attractive than a simple piece of paper. They have colors, styles, the possibility of making a relevance ranking, of writing down notes for today, for next week, or even for the month and for the semester. They also allow you to put notes on the notes or make them jump on our screen at the moment we ask.

However, there are several reasons why we prefer to use a few small pieces of paper..

First: I don't want to spend half an hour organizing my day. As I said at the beginning, organize what I have to do and then do it, for me it is like doing the same thing twice. The less time you have to spend on targeting, the better. Many of these applications have a large number of options that we will never need to use and yet they are well visible and can make us lose focus on what we are doing..

Second: Homework cannot be crossed out on mobile. Well actually it can be done but to do it you need to press a button. It is much faster and more satisfying to pick up a pen and cross something out almost instantly.

In addition, the fact of crossing out each task little by little acts as a powerful reinforcer that allows you to maintain motivation and the desire to continue finishing things and continue crossing them. There is no greater satisfaction than arriving at the end of the day to check the amount of tasks you have managed to finish and cross out.

Third: If you want to increase your productivity, you will need to eliminate all sources of possible distractions. And there is no greater danger than using a mobile or desktop application to check your tasks. At any time you can miss a notification from WhatsApp or social networks or receive an inopportune e-mail that distracts you about what you were doing.

When do you have to make each of the daily lists?

This depends a bit on the individual preferences of each one. There are people who prefer to do it in the morning as soon as they wake up. Other people, on the contrary, prefer to do it the night before, as a way to close the day and establish the foundations of what the next day will be..

It is necessary to point out that in this article we have not established a distinction between tasks in the personal sphere or tasks related to work. We have put everything "in the same bag". However, for some people it may be useful to either have two different lists (one personal and the other work) or divide each piece of paper with a line and relegate each half to each of the areas..

If you already have a system that allows you to organize yourself and increase your productivity, then we congratulate you. However, if you belong to the large group of people who face every day without a well-defined concrete plan, perhaps this simple system that we have told you in this article can help you organize yourself better..