How to prioritize what’s most important to you

Photo by STIL on Unsplash

If your experience is anything like mine, you probably come to the end of a day wishing that you had another 24 hours in order to get through your to-do list. Why do we stuff our schedules like that? Believe me when I say that I know that feeling of spinning your wheels, not knowing how you’ll get it all done, and functioning in a stress-induced rush mode in order to reach the finish line each day. It’s exhausting, and it’s not good for any aspect of our health–mental, physical, or emotional.

Learning–and implementing–some productivity and prioritization hacks has assisted me tremendously in getting my time and energy under control. I want to share some of those tips with you today in hopes that they will be of help to you, too.

Take your power back from the chaos that wants to rule your day-to-day life by learning to prioritize.

Prioritize your personal space

Clearing away the clutter from your personal spaces is a powerful first step as you prioritize. Start by decluttering specific areas within your home that feel especially overwhelming. You can then carry that decluttering energy to your desk at work, to your car, and to wherever else you see physical chaos that affects you personally. You’ll enjoy the feeling of calm and control that surfaces once you prioritize bringing your surroundings into a more settled and peaceful state.

Make a list that works for you

We all have different ways of making lists work to our benefit. Some people (myself included) love writing out our planned activities on paper; others love making digital lists on their phone or computer. Choose your favorite form of information collection and list everything that comes to your mind that you need to do. Then, organize that list by short-term items, medium-term items, and then long-term items.

Prioritize the urgency and time limits of your listed items

Next, you’ll have to determine what MUST be done urgently. This is the hard
one, for we all know that all the things seem to be essential—but they’re not. Rank them in terms of what absolutely can’t wait, like that report for your boss that needs to be ready for the morning meeting, or returning a call this afternoon on the way home to your best friend who is going through a serious health challenge. Adding urgency and timelines makes it easier for you to prioritize what absolutely needs to get done–and what can truly wait.

Free up your brain from overload

We stress out so very often because we leave it up to our brain to remember every last detail of our lives. Our brains weren’t made to work overtime like that! Give yourself a break and schedule your activities in your planner. For example, instead of making yourself try to remember to order the cake for your daughter’s birthday and send the invites, add those things to your written schedule so that you can free your mind to work on challenges that require problem-solving, not reminding. In situations like this, creating margin is essential.

Prioritize 5-minute items

Some things on our schedules literally take 5 minutes of our time to complete. They are no-brainers and can be cranked out with the quickness. Get them out of your way first; that way, they are eliminated from your schedule and you are freed up to prioritize items that call for more thought and time. Think of the relief you’ll feel when you take those 5 minutes to get the easy-peasy stuff done! Crossing things off of your list psychologically motivates you to keep going, so roll out those small tasks and watch how the rest of your day runs smoother.

Create a routine

The hardest part of getting anything done is actually starting it. Given that it can be a challenge to get the ball rolling, it might come in handy to prioritize your daily routine. There are certain things you must do every day and week, so get them on the schedule so that they are handled at the appropriate time.

For example, you know that you have to respond to messages from clients. Pick a time to do it in the morning, crank out your responses, and then set another time slot for handling additional inquiries. This way, you’ll complete your work without constant interruptions.

As you prioritize more of your life, you’ll feel like a weight has been lifted off your shoulders. You’ll become more productive, your stress level will diminish when it comes to pending activities, and you’ll find that you have more time for the events and people you really want to be involved with.

What needs to be prioritized the most in your life right now? How will you go about doing it?