The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up Your To-Do List

We can't know what is worth doing if we don't know where we are going.

• Before touching any clutter, visualise what it would mean to have a clutter-free to-do list. Maybe you want to have a successful business, or get in shape.
• Then identify why you want to get in shape or have a successful business. Write down your "why". This is what you will use to determine if a task is worth doing.
• Break your vision down into several goals for each area of your life, and create a task for each.

Your to-do list may be stuffed with half-baked ideas, empty projects, and tasks you forgot to check off. Make a complete inventory of all the tasks and projects on your to-do list. Then see what you can delete. The purpose is to cut away the nonessential to make space for what's important to you now.

As you do your inventory, ask yourself:

• Does this task bring you closer to the life you want to live?
• Some items you have to keep, such as doing your taxes.
• If you don't want to let go of long-standing tasks, such as writing a book, save it in a "Maybe later" file and archive it.

Now that you have the right tasks, it's time to sort and organize. Every task on your to-do list should be related to your goal.

• Keep your projects visible. Seeing every project you've committed to keeps you from adding too many.
• Sequence your tasks in a logical order before you get to work.
• Add priorities. Some tasks are more important to your goal.
• Give each task a due date. As a rule of thumb, estimate how long a task will take, then double it.
• Ensure your to-do list sparks joy. Consider the wording, colour theme and emojis.

Once your task list is clear and aligned with your goals, take steps to keep it clear.

• For every new task that comes to your to-do list, ask if it leads to your vision. If not, discard it immediately.
• Unhelpful tasks will sneak in from time to time. Weed them out with a weekly review so you can start each week with a clearly prioritised to-do list.
• Check in on your big-picture every few months.