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Struggling to Focus? Get Back to the Basics: To-Do list

April 16th, 2009

In these times of extraordinary economic uncertainty, most people I talk to are having a lot of trouble focusing. Worry and anxiety seem to flood the brain with fear adrenaline—making it hard to concentrate, remember anything, put two sentences together, feel effective. So what do you do about it? First of all, go easy on yourself—taking some comfort in the fact that everyone is in the same boat. Then, get back to basics..........

Tags: concentration, to-do lists, task management, focus, time managment, prioritization, streamlining, productivity

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Comments

Comment posted on 04/17/2009 at 08:39 am

I totally, agree, Julie. I call myself a time-management junkie because I have learned to avoid time wasters. I use notebooks and write constantly, it's proven an excellent use of any time I can consider 'spare!' Even if I never look at it again, writing it down helps me retain. I can then focus my life on the people that matter the most to me, and that's very significant with my large family. I'll be back to read more of your posts, thanks!

Comment posted on 04/17/2009 at 10:18 am

I, too, have an iPhone and have yet to find a good to do system for it that let's me keep work, personal, church, etc to do list separate. Please post if you find something. For now I have a Note pad at work and wing the rest. Not good LOL!

Comment posted on 04/17/2009 at 11:44 am

Very good ideas, Julie. I take all notes in a single notebook, and any to-do item gets a big asterisk. When the task is done, I circle the asterisk. It's very easy then to go back through the notebook, noting the uncircled asterisks. I also use my inbox as a to-do list. All e-mails that don't need a reply or a task are deleted or filed quickly.

Comment posted on 04/17/2009 at 12:59 pm

I'm really into getting more organized lately and have also used a Palm Organizer until recently. I now have an Omnia Cell phone, similar to an iphone, and I have Outlook 2007 on my cell and labtop. I am able to separate calenders into categories and can synch the calenders from phone to laptop. I love it!

Comment posted on 04/18/2009 at 06:02 am

I've been using Mark Forster's AutoFocus system (Google it--it's free!), which keeps everything on one paper list but where you only work on one page at a time. It's not 100% working for me yet but it's better than anything I've ever tried before.

Comment posted on 04/18/2009 at 08:29 pm

I love my iphone. My favorite application is iTalk. This is a voice recorder which allows you to synch it to your iTunes. I record ideas for new projects, meetings with clients, creative thoughts while on my runs. I also use the Notes very extensively to keep lists, time journals, movie recommendations from friends. On the plane you can draft emails. Notes can be emailed. The first line of the Note is the subject line for the email.

Comment posted on 04/23/2009 at 11:06 am

I don't have an iPhone yet, so I don't have any first hand knowledge. But when I get one, I'll be putting Omnifocus on it. I have notebooks of information and I have yet to find an electronic application that allows me to organize and sort things exactly as I would the handwritten versions. It seems like this program would do that. If I am stuck w/o pen and paper, I'll send a text message to my email address so I know I won't forget whatever it was.

Comment posted on 04/23/2009 at 02:00 pm

I use Outlook and I have a windows mobile phone and I just sync the info back and forth, I also have OneNote on both my computer and my phone and I can send that info back and forth. It works well. Or I can text a thought to myself if I'm really in a hurry.

Comment posted on 04/26/2009 at 09:14 am

I used to be a time management junkie; in my working days with a national wireless communication corporation. Since I'd left the working world, I have come down with a chronic illness and find it hard to keep my housekeeping up; much less deal with the clutter of our home from the last 10 years that is piling up! Any suggestions for a person who has the desire, with no physical ability much less ambition?

Comment posted on 05/06/2009 at 01:40 pm

If you are a mac user you can easily sync up ical with your iphone and setup different colours for each person and your work. At a glance you can see what everyone is doing. Each task can be opened for more details. I don't want to have more than one calendar and this allows me to have ONE!

Comment posted on 06/30/2009 at 06:22 pm

Seems to me computer-based to-do lists have upsides and downsides. UPSIDES You can play around with categories, add items, change the whole list(s) outlook with ease. You can tag, search, organize and gain new insights. DOWNSIDES You can spend all your time doing the upsides. You can plan about GTD w/o ever doing GTD. Add to this the time in finding the right program (I'm on the Mac -- there are many, to say the least!) and learning to use it. To repeat -- you can spend all your doing time in preparing to do! I wonder if anyone here has had these kinds of issues and has found a way out, short of retreating to paper+pen :) ?

Comment posted on 07/02/2009 at 03:13 pm

I have an admittedly weird system for getting rid of paper clutter. But it works for me. I use my old fax machine to send important papers (bills, contracts, etc) to my eFax account. I get the document in my inbox as a pdf, store the document(s) on a CD, then shred away. I didn't use my fax machine for years, but now I use it a lot -- not to fax, but to scan.

Comment posted on 07/28/2009 at 05:32 pm

The challenge with paper to-do lists (especially one that has the to-dos in priority order) is that as soon as another item comes up the old list is no longer in priority order. You may have a work priority to-do list for each project (or client) you are working on, a priority to-do list for household/family projects or tasks, and you may have sub-lists (with tasks needed to complete each to-do item). Let's say a new to-do comes up; you need to insert the new to-do in the current to-do list and prioritize it. With a paper list, you either scribble it in the proper priority place or re-write the list, which is a waste of time. The better course is to have a software program which once you input the to-do and prioritize it against other to-dos, all you have to do is add and prioritize other to-dos around it. Some to-dos will have some sub-tasks. For example, your junior in high school might set up basic tasks under the to-do of applying to college that include: identify the ACT/SAT testing dates, investigate preparation courses, investigate colleges in your area of interest, visit colleges on your short list, start the application process, etc., etc. Some tasks have sub-tasks or a number of sub-tasks, and you need a computer program to allow you frame out the sub-tasks. You can do this in a word processing program or in an organizer program but I have not seen one that allows you to easily prioritize (and set dates) among all competing to-dos. If you have customers or clients, it would be good if you can identify and prioritize tasks and subtasks (and set dates for them) across all clients. I would be very interested to learn of a program (short of a complex project management program) that someone has used that works well in this area.

Comment posted on 07/28/2009 at 08:03 pm

I absolutely love my Franklin planner. However, the challenge for Franklin Covey is to get back to the basics of providing high quality products. Right now, in my opinion the best looking binder in their store is the Julie Morgenstern binder. I wish you would offer it in the Compact size. I'm a compact kinda gal!!!!! I love recording my daily task and following the list through out the day. It really works for me.

Comment posted on 11/02/2009 at 11:57 am

I�m new to the world of �Morganizing� and just discovered this blog today, so please forgive me for jumping in so late.  I use two different tools to keep my personal and professional lives organized. Doing so helps me leave my work at the office, which is extremely important to me. I use a Franklin Covey planner to keep my personal life organized. I tried using my cell phone for a brief time, but found that I missed the satisfaction of checking things off of my �to do� list. I also like having everything (coupons, stamps, bills, etc.) in one place. Obviously, I can�t store those types of items in my phone. I use Outlook as my organizing tool at work because my job involves responding to client email. I�ve created several folders in which I store all email (color-coded for cross-reference) that needs further attention. Once an issue has been resolved, all related email messages are moved to my Sent folder and then archived at the end of every month. I also use the Outlook calendar to schedule all meetings, reminders, etc. The most helpful tip I can offer is to record all important information (whether it be an appointment, a task, a phone number, etc.) immediately. That way you don�t have to try to remember everything or worry that you�ve forgotten something. Your mind is free to concentrate on the activity at hand. I look forward to reading future blogs and chiming in when I have something to offer! Coni

Comment posted on 11/02/2009 at 12:05 pm

Sorry for the crazy symbols. I typed my reply in Word and pasted it into the blog. I guess the symbols didn't transfer properly.

Comment posted on 12/14/2009 at 02:13 pm

Interesting! I am wondering about all this right now, as I have several 'inboxes' and to-do lists in many places, including 3+ e-mail addresses (and Outlook isn't really an option, as my Mum is using it on the same computer!) Also, I've experimented with several things that work (or not) and my mind seems quite 'tricky to trick' lol! into inspiration, I mean! As for the person who also has some health issues - have you checked into the nutrition/exercise connection? I find I can 'get up and go do' after a brisk walk outside much more easily, and certain nutrition is linked to getting more done too.. I find that a big old blackboard near my computer is much more easily noticed than millions of little pieces or a (closed) organizer! :)

Comment posted on 01/19/2010 at 11:38 am

Awesome Note application for iphone is the best app for keeping your to- dos. It is truly awesome. You separate your tasks into colored folders which you label and determine priority levels. And best of all, it is always with you!

Comment posted on 03/14/2010 at 08:43 pm

I used to be a believer in the one system as well until I could not find anything on the market that fit my needs - would love to create my own we shall see - but with a family and sports I find that I use a master calendar for myself with all appointments and then I use a family calendar that just has the kids appts on it and anything that involves all of us - I know that it challenges the consistency and whether appts fall through the cracks - but it works for us and like anything else it just takes time to settle into routine

Comment posted on 08/17/2010 at 11:43 am

After reading Mark Hurst's "Bit Literacy," I found that keeping it simple is KEY. Simple software called GoodToDo, keeps our imbox clean and helps you streamline your to do's for each day. http://goodtodo.com/index.php

Comment posted on 11/30/2010 at 05:19 pm

I like to use toodledo.com. An electronic to do list you can use from your desk/laptop and sync it with the app on your iPhone. The basic version is free,and you can upgrade with more options. What I like about it us that I can have different lists, different priorities and see them by list, all or by priority. Many options. Includes email alerts etc.

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