How To Pair Down Ideas & Make The Important Ones Priority
First things first, find a quiet space where you can sit down and take 15 minutes to write all this out.
OK, so we’re going to start by emptying out all of the lists in our head. (Ladies I know that this is a long list, but trust this process!) Go ahead and write a list of everything that’s on your to do list as well as bucket list and lastly your personal desires.
As you write/type this master list remember you can change things later, so don’t worry about trying to get every last thing down right now.
…
Great job!
Next, we’re going to start to pair things that can be done together and put them onto a seperate sheet of paper/new document. So say that you have on your list take a vacation and visit the Mayan Ruins, maybe that can be one item. (You get the idea.) As you begin to pair the items on your list, cross them off the old lists. Once you have your final list we are now going to break it down into categories.
The categories will go as followed:
Things that need immediate attention
Things you want to do, but can come later
Things you need to delegate to others
Unrealistic things that you will never do, but have been swirling around in your head.
I call this the essential 4 D’s!
Do it
Delay it
Delegate it
Dump it
Now, you’re going to take your “do it” list and break it down by how much time you think each item will take and put it into your weekly calendar. (Make sure to allow time for breaks if you need to stretch or stop and refresh yourself and grab something to drink.)
For the “delay it“ list be sure to put a date by which you will have completed that item.
The “delegate it” list, mark down who you are delegating the item to, be sure to let that person know with clear instructions about the item and come up with a time that it will be done by.
Now I know the “dump it” list seems pretty straightforward, Make sure that this is something you are OK with letting go. Think about the benefit of letting this item go, and thank it for coming into your mind and know that you can always come back to it again at a later time if need be.
As always mahalo and nā ho’omaika’i! (Thank you & congratulations)!
