Making a to-do list for 2015 does the business

The humble list can be a powerful organisation tool – if you can keep it under control. Juliet Landau-Pope explains how to cut the clutter

Forget gadgets and gizmos, if there was a competition for the most useful organisational tool for small businesses, I’d nominate the simple to-do list. They help capture the ideas that float around our minds when we’re trying to focus on something else. Once written down on a list, ideas no longer need to nag at your thoughts, interrupting your concentration or even your sleep.

Compiling lists also helps you keep track of myriad tasks. Running a business, and pursuing that elusive “work-life balance”, can be overwhelming due to the variety of roles and responsibilities you take on. As a sole trader, you’re passionate about your goods or services but also need time to deal with admin, planning, research, marketing and perhaps managing other people. A to-do list can help you to monitor these different activities, but like any other aspect of business development, managing a to-do list requires strategic thinking.

As a declutter coach, I work with busy individuals to improve time management and organisational skills. The most common mistakes that I’ve witnessed small business owners make with to-do lists are making them as a way of procrastinating or writing lists that are too long.

Faced with a never-ending list of things to do, it’s hard to know where to start. Too many items on a list can be like clutter in your home. And, like clutter, an excessive list can be a drain on energy, creativity and motivation.

Decluttering your to-do list can help you to plan, prioritise and ultimately to focus on what really matters. Here are some simple steps towards streamlining your to-do list.

1 Review the whole project

2. Stay focused on the bigger
picture

3 Resolve to make bold decisions

4 Let go of guilt and self-
judgement

5 Resist the urge to do everything
yourself

6 Decide what matters most