Make it Count: How to Organize Your day to Maximize Your Productivity

If you’re anything like me, you feel best when your productive. I like accomplishing things, checking tasks off on my to-do list. How do you do it? My friends and family ask. They think I’m Wonder Woman, balancing a freelance artistic career and an active social life. My secret is simple:

I write things down. When it comes to organizing your time, pen and paper is your best friends. Did you know that people who compose short-term and long-term goal lists are ninety percent more productive than those who do not? In just three easy steps you can organize your time so that you can get the most out of your day:

Make it Count Tip #1: Make a List
The first step is making a list. Especially at times when you feel overwhelmed, write down everything that you need to accomplish in a week.
This allows you to get all your thoughts out of your head and onto paper. But for some, seeing the list can be daunting, which brings me to my next step...

Make it Count Tip #2: Divide
After I make my list, I distribute my tasks amongst the seven days of the week. I try to group similarly themed tasks on the same day. So, for
example, stocking up on toiletries and getting groceries are both errands, so I’ll schedule them on a day when I’m out and about. Cleaning my
bathroom, folding my laundry, and catching up on e-mails can all be done from home, so I’ll schedule them on one of those lazy Sundays. It’s all
about planning your week to set yourself up for success.

Make it Count Tip #3: Conquer and Review
Now that you’ve outlined which tasks you’ll be completing daily, all you have to do is stick to your list, day by day, and you’ll accomplish
everything you need to accomplish.

I get it—things come up; I’m always scolding myself for not getting enough done in one day, but I also know that I’m the type of person to stuff my days with an impractical amount of tasks. Try writing out your weekly schedule and see how it goes.

If you find you’re never able to check off everything on your list, then you need to eliminate some of your tasks, or at least ask for help from a
spouse or loved one. You may even find yourself breezing through your to-dos each day and actually finding some spare time—if this happens to you, tell me how.

Image from MorgueFile

Amanda Cosco
		About the author:
		Amanda Cosco is a freelance writer. The city is her muse.  After completing a master’s degree in English Literature at Ryerson University in Toronto, Amanda packed up her life and moved to the city in pursuit of jazz, sex, and soup. Amanda completed her bachelor of arts at York University, where she had one foot in literary studies and one foot in journalism, earning her a double-major in English and professional writing. Amanda has presented her scholarly work at academic at conferences across Toronto, and her research on the metaphor of hunger in women’s fiction has received over $30,000 in grants and prizes. With her pen name, Lady Medusa, Amanda has left her digital footprints all over the internet. Currently, she’s blogging for several social media websites, and composing her first book of poetry, entitled "Autobiography of Skin. Follow her on Twitter @ladymspeaks
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