Make Them Meaningful

Tell someone about your deadline or use an app.

Having an outside motivator helps to keep you accountable to your deadlines.

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Master the Art of the To-Do List by Understanding How They Fail

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lifehacker.com

The to-do list is an inescapable, age-old productivity tool. It is our very human attempt to create order in our disorderly lives and an expression of our ability to impose self-control. Most of us, including to-do list haters, keep one, and so do 63% of professionals, according to a LinkedIn survey released earlier this year.

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Dealing with to-do lists

The common struggles to conquer our to-do lists:

41% of to-do items are never completed.
50% of completed to-do items are done within a day.
18% of completed to-do ite...

Too many to-do's

Most of us put way too much stuff on our lists. And that puts us on the path to failure.

Overstuffing our lists causes a continuous thrum of worry in our heads. And the worry that results from having too many conflicting goals causes our productivity as well as our physical and mental health to suffer.

How we're making to-do lists

We're just not good at constructing our to-do lists. It's not as simple as it looks.

Many of us aren't any good at formulating the tasks on the list, failing to think through steps and plans, so that when we're faced with too many tasks and too few suggestions on how to proceed, we don't complete tasks. Remember that the to-do list string around your finger is for you to make better plans using the list.

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How to Deal with Deadline Pressure

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entrepreneur.com

5 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Deadline pressure is something that's universal in every industry, as are the anxious feelings associated with a shortage of time. But, have no fear. There are some methods to reduce or minimize the stress and anxiety of approaching deadlines, that will better prepare you to meet them.

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Setting your own deadlines

Create artificial deadlines for yourself. Understand that you can save yourself a load of stress by acting as if something is due earlier than it actually is.

Mentally, this creat...

Leveraging help

If you are worried others will view you as inept if you ask for help, you most likely will procrastinate, and even more pressure will build up, as the deadline rapidly approaches.

You can reduce this by leaving your ego at the door and simply asking others for help. Another way to get help from others is to ask for an extension - it can make a world of difference in the way you feel. But don't abuse this.

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Get the Most in Life and Work with Gamification

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producttribe.com

Have you ever tried to set your own record time while working on a boring task? Tried to beat your previous commute time? Do more in a half-an-hour session, or reward yourself after finishing a project? While even these simple ways of using gamification in life can bring tangible results, professional gamified products can go much further.

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