“To-do” lists. I don’t know about you, but I love them! Planning, for me, is almost as much fun as actually “doing.” But if you’re anything like me, maybe you get a little over-ambitious sometimes? Are there items on your to-do list (or your goals) that have been there for weeks, a month, or more, that you haven’t taken any action on? Chances are, every time you think about these items, or look at them on your list, you feel a little pang – maybe it’s guilt, dread, or anxiety, maybe it’s even a physical sensation of heaviness or fatigue in your body. Major energy drain!
I recently spent some time with my friend Erek Ostrowski of Verve Coaching, and he introduced me to a great way to stop this common energy drain. Essentially, the items, plans, or goals in question are things we are not doing. So what we can do is take them off our to-do list, and move them to our “not-doing” list. This doesn’t mean we’ll never do them. It doesn’t in any way limit our opportunity to revisit these tasks whenever we decide the time is right. It just means we are consciously choosing not to do them right now, and we choose to be OK with it. This was really helpful for me! My busy little brain creates tasks way faster than I can actually accomplish them. I really appreciated this insight from Erek, which went hand-in-hand with the realization I had after the ambassador summit about having too many goals.
The first thing I put on my not-doing list: taking a digital photography class. True, I only know how to use my “wicked fancy” camera to about 10% of its capabilities. I’m just gonna be OK with that for now! What tasks or goals have you been putting off? How good would it feel to be able to move them off your to-do list?
photo by little blue hen
I guess I should give in and put “do my laundry” off my to-do list and put it in the “not doing” list.. I love lists and I love the idea of having a “not doing” list even more! Organization! :)
Totally! Get that “laundry” nonsense outta here… ;)
Thanks for the shout-out, Andrea!
As you pointed out in your post, the reason why this works is because it gives us an opportunity to consciously choose what not to do, and manage the “not-doing” of it externally, so it no longer eats up brain space. Usually, we are so focused on what we want to do, what we need to do, and what we think we should do, that what not to do ends up being selected unconsciously (by means of neglect). This is where I find myself losing energy — on all those loose ends that aren’t getting completed, but that still occupy space in my brain because they are incomplete. Choosing what not to do, and getting it out of my head and onto paper (or Word doc), can free up a lot of energy for the stuff I’m consciously choosing to do.
-Erek