We all have goals in mind these days. In fact, the very word “goals” has become more widely used than ever before. Perhaps even overused. It’s even become an adjective, which I don’t think any of us saw coming. But, like a weary judge in front of a lawyer pursuing an “innovative” line of questioning, I’ll allow it. Because the … well, goal … of all of this is to get us doing more and getting that to-do list under control.
We spend so much time doing things we need to do. And a major reason that so much time is spent on this is our attitude. If you embark on a task with the attitude that “well, it’s got to be done”, it will slow you down. You’ve got one eye on the clock. You want the task to be over, and your focus should be on doing it well. If you stop thinking “let’s tick this off” and start thinking “let’s kick this task’s butt”, you’ll get further. And it will go faster.
And that’s true for all of us. If we stop seeing things we need to do, and start seeing things we want to do, we’ll get more done. Including things we really do want to do.
A Change Of Mindset
One thing that holds us all back these days is the fact that we see everyday tasks individually. “I have to clear the gutters” we may say, “because there’s stuff in the gutters”. But if we think of a task in this way, what’s to stop us thinking “I don’t care if there’s stuff in the gutters”? It makes us resent the task and see it in isolation.
See Beyond The Moment
It helps to look down the line at something you genuinely look forward to, like a holiday. What’s your end goal? If your end goal in the aforementioned task is “clean gutters”, good luck getting enthusiastic.
If your end goal instead is “my house will be cleaner, my drains will work better, and I can be comfortable where I live”, it becomes easier. You stop seeing the task as an end in itself, and start seeing it instead as a way to free up future time.
Stop Fighting the To-Do List
We’re all guilty from time to time of too much inward focus. Avoiding this is key to all self-improvement plans, such as Manifestation Miracle by Heather Mathews. Yes, there are always going to be things we need to do. And if you just think of them as things to get out of the way, guess what? You’ll have something else you need to do soon – and you’ll get annoyed by that. Doing things under duress is the least fun way to do them.
Free yourself from the idea that life is a long string of tasks. Have a to-do list by all means. It helps you be organized. But don’t have “the bad list” and “the fun list”. All you’ll get from that is a renewed resentment for the less fun stuff. It’s all part of life, and the more proactive you are about it, the more you’ll actually enjoy the fun parts.
What’s on your to-do list?
