In my article The Procrastination Buster I talked about how resistance to a task tends to be relative. To give an example, if you are faced with a choice between doing a difficult task and an easy task, the easy task will obviously be the easy option. However if you are faced with a choice between the same difficult task and another even more difficult task then the difficult task will seem to be the easy option.
In the article I developed this principle into a simple system of dealing with an open to do list. The idea is to work through the to do list comparing each task in turn with the next task on the list and doing the one which you are resisting the least. That way each task you do seems like the easy option, even though it may be quite difficult.
The main problem I found in dealing with a to do list in this way was that, as the list gets longer, it can take a very long time to work from one end of the list to the other. In fact if one is adding items fast enough, one never gets to the end of the list!
A simple modification makes the method work much better. Instead of comparing each item with the next item on the list, you compare the first item on the list (i.e. the oldest) with the last item (the newest).
So to illustrate, your list might read as follows:
You compare the first item with the last item. Which is easier, check email or return the client’s phone call?
You decide to return the client’s phone call. During the call various action items came up which you added to the list. So it now reads:
Once again you compare the first item with the last item. You decide to clear: your email. Once you have finished it, the list reads like this:
So you now have a choice between tidying your desk and investigating my website. Which are you going to choose?
What I have found is that because the list is being tackled at both ends, it tends to get less bogged down than the previous method I recommended.
If you’re someone who likes to work off an open to do list, then why not try this method out and see how you get on? All feedback will be appreciated.
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