Your To-do List Is Missing These Two Things

We may earn a commission from links on this page.

Credit: Kaspars Grinvalds/Shutterstock

No matter what method you choose to make your to-do lists, there’s something you should be adding to them to make sure that they’re as effective as possible—and to keep you motivated and on-track so you can be your most productive. In fact, there are two somethings.

Include context

To-do lists are, at their core, an outline of the basic things you need to get done on a given day. But they need some context to be most effective. There’s a big difference between having “clean the kitchen” on a to-do list and actually having a sense of what that even looks like and means. 

Under each item in your list, include some context. For instance, if you have a big project at work you need to tackle, include information about the resources you have. If the project requires a certain software, put that in there, just so you know what you’ll need to do when it comes time to get on that task. Alternatively, break each task down into smaller action items using a bulleted list under the main task. So, to use cleaning the kitchen as an example again, your sub-tasks might include stopping at the store for more bleach after work, disinfecting the countertop, and rearranging the storage cabinet where you keep the cleaning products afterward. 

Seeing the context around your tasks stops them from feeling so overwhelming and wasting your time by making you deliberate over how to start and what to do. 

Add deadlines

Every item on your to-do list should also include a deadline. Think of your to-dos as a list of mini SMART goals: The “T” in that acronym stands for “time-bound,” and there’s a good reason. Knowing the deadline and keeping it in mind will help you stay focused and motivated and make sure you don’t spend too long on tasks that aren’t as immediately relevant. 

Get in the habit of adding “by [date]” every time you jot something on your list. It’s not just “study for chemistry test,” but “study for chemistry test by Tuesday.” Every time you look at your list, you’ll see a reminder of the deadlines and due dates that are coming up, which will help you stay on track and prioritize what you actually need to do. Prioritization methods like the Eisenhower matrix rely on the timeliness of each task to determine if it is urgent or not, but you don’t need a whole involved process or matrix every time. Just putting the deadlines on even the most basic list of to-dos will help you naturally prioritize the things that need more immediate attention. 

Tools for customizable and adaptable to-do lists

To create to-do lists that include context and deadlines, you should have the ability to edit the list pretty easily and quickly, since situations and due dates can change. You can, of course, use your phone’s Notes app to keep track of your list, but if you want to do this a little more analog, avoid a planner in this case, as you won’t have enough room to add in new context, or the ability to change dates once you write them down. 

Instead, try using a white board or similarly erasable device. You can pick up a small, magnetic white board with six dry-erase markers for $12.99 on Amazon, for instance, or could go more high-tech and try Rocketbook’s reusable sticky notes ($23.99). These are real-life sticky notes you can write on with an erasable pen and upload to your devices using Rocketbook’s app, so they’re the best of both worlds.