by Ann Marie Dwyer

Created on: March 12, 2007   Last Updated: March 26, 2007

As a procrastinator at heart, crossing items off my to-do list was nearly impossible. Not being one to keep New Year's resolutions as well as hating the proverbial "Honey-do" list, I tried this tactic instead. By organizing my chores in a slightly different arrangement, I found I love the feeling of accomplishment.

1. Have faith! You can do this.

2. Bear with me here. Make a list of the first 100 things you know you need to do. List everything, even if it is a five minute job. Examples: Write a thank you note to your aunt for the gift she sent; Clean out the cabinet over the refrigerator; Take mate on weekend trip; Buy new shoes.

3. Date the list. Make a reasonable time frame. I like having all year. Surprisingly, this does not foster procrastination.

4. When you have five or more minutes, day or night, check your list. Find a job on the list that you can do in the time that you have right now and do it. While you are looking, cross off all of the things that you have done already.

5. Job #82 crossed off the list. Do you still have a few minutes? Find another job.

6. Repeat steps 4 & 5 until you are out of time. Jobs that you think will take a long time can sometimes be accomplished in just a few minutes.

7. Enlist help (read- children or spouse). Two sets of hands are always faster than one. Whether this is delegating an item or having help finishing a bigger item, help is always good.

8. Do not fear starting something and not being able to finish it. Example: I am refinishing a trunk. #18-23 are the six steps to refinishing the trunk. By breaking big jobs down into steps, you can finish any job without being overwhelmed.

9. Reward yourself. When you accomplish five jobs from your to-do list, celebrate! Have a cup of cappuccino or go out for an ice cream.

10. When the list is finished, celebrate a lot. Take off a few days or have a massage. Go back to step 1! You will have a lot more faith than the first time you made the list. Like every task, the more often you do it, the faster you can do it.

You can finish any task as long as you break it down into manageable pieces. Every year I manage to make and finish at least four lists, without working on it everyday. Some days are five items off of the to-do list. Some items take three days. The best part is looking for a job on the to-do list and finding I have already done three!

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