Listing Your Way To Success

A list is a tremendous tool in the assisting of increased productivity. It is no uncommon to see someone walking around aimlessly because he or she does not know what to do next. How much time do you think is lost because a person of this ilk has no clue what the next step is? Estimates certainly will conclude that tens of thousands of man hours are lost annually because of this simple concept.

Writing up a list helps in a few different ways. When done before hand, it helps to clarify one's thinking and instill in him or her what needs to be accomplished. At the same time, one gets a visual representation of the actions that require attention. While there are many different ways of going about this, the important factor is to have an idea throughout the day of you are going to do.

Procrastination is something that many people battle. People can naturally fall into the mindset of not doing anything. A list assists helps combat this because the next action is plain to see. Of course, one might still put it off but the likelihood is diminished if it is written down. Trust me when I tell you that it is easy to ignore something that is an abstract idea somewhere.

One final note about list: many experts will state that it is best to write all actions on a piece of paper and then number them in order of importance. This ensures that one focuses his or her attention on what provides the most benefit. I agree with this in theory. However, since most people have a problem with taking any action at all, I find that simply writing the actions down and starting on them is helpful. The crucial idea is to get moving. Altering the order things are done in can be implemented at a later date.

If you are suffering from inertia and have difficulty taking action, here is an exercise to help you get started. Pull out a piece of paper and make a list of 5 simple actions you need to take. Write them down without thought to how important they are. The idea is to create a list of things that can be completed rather easily. Once you have the 5 actions, go do them. Do the first and do not stop until it is crossed off. After that, do the same thing with the second. Follow this until you complete the entire list. You will notice how this simple exercise enabled you to increase your productivity dramatically.

It is amazing the power we have when we focus.
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