What’s on your TO DO list?

I love lists. Are you a list person? Some of us will have a TO DO list written down, some will have it in our heads. The problem with a TO DO list is there is always something to do. They can become endless and overwhelming.

Your TO DO list for the day might say…

• Washing
• Cleaning
• Ironing
• Get groceries
• Tidy house
• Get children ready for school
• Go to work
• Concentrate at work
• Make packed lunches
• Change nappies
• Flush the toilet
• Clean the toilet
• Pick up toys
• Find lost toys
• Mend broken toys
• Make telephone calls
• Pay bills
• Answer emails
• Pick children up from school
• Sort out sibling arguments
• Cook dinner
• Encourage children to eat dinner
• Wash up from dinner
• Help with homework
• Drive children to activities
• Read bedtime stories
• Get children to sleep
• Flush the toilet again
• Clean the toilet again
• Go to the toilet yourself (if you are lucky, on your own)
• Make yourself a fourth cup of tea, because the last three have either gone cold or you can’t remember where you left them!
• Do some exercise (oh no... I’ve run out of time; I’ll add it to my list for tomorrow)

Does exercise always get pushed to the bottom of your to do list?

Do you find yourself putting everyone else first?

There are lots of different ways to get done anything you want to/need to achieve. Everyone has 24 hours a day, it is how you decide to use those 24 hours that count. Try these tips to help you:

Tip 1: Prioritise 3 tasks.

Choose 3 things each day that are important and urgent. Ask yourself what is important and has to be done today? What could be done tomorrow?

One of your items will of course be to look after your children.

One of your items on the list is for you. It can be as simple as ‘to have a long bath’. (I’ll tell you that I quite often write ‘shower’ on my list, so I can go and enjoy my shower rather than have a 2-minute jump in and out because I haven’t allocated enough time for me or completely forgotten and then I realise how late it is!)

Cross them off the list when you have completed them for the day. If you complete your 3 items before the end of the day, then you can always do an extra item.

Tip 2: Delegate

Remember you can do anything but you don’t have to do everything.

What tasks could you delegate to a partner, other family member, older children?

Tip 3: Bitesize chunks

Break tasks down into smaller more achievable chunks. So instead of ‘Clean the house’, have ‘clean the bathroom’. Instead of ‘reply to emails’, have ‘reply to a specific email that is urgent’. Instead of ‘do some exercise’, have ‘do a 10-minute Pilates workout’.

Tip 4: Write a ‘HAVE DONE’ list

At the end of the day remind yourself of everything you have done. You could even write a ‘HAVE DONE’ list. It might say, I have kept my children safe, clean, fed, happy. I have played with them, engaged with them, spent time with them. And as you know this is not something to be sniffed at. This is so worthwhile and often undervalued by society and by ourselves too.

I remember when my children were tiny and poorly and I’d spend all day sat cuddling them. A voice in my head would be saying ‘but you haven’t done anything today’. But I had. I had done the most important thing I could have done on that day, which was to care for my poorly child. So never belittle everything you do each day for your children.

Tip 5: Be kind to yourself

Be kind to yourself if you don’t tick everything off your list. Add it onto your list for tomorrow or another day and make sure you are giving yourself realistic expectations. Focus on everything you have achieved and remember it’s not all about ‘doing’, ‘being’ is just as important.

So, let’s put this into practice. I’m going to set you a task for YOU for your TO DO list tomorrow. I’m inviting you to join my exclusive Facebook group ‘Bitesize Pilates for Busy Mums’. I’d love to have a community for like-minded busy mums to help, support and empower each other to do Pilates on a regular basis. A space which is safe for busy mums to learn, grow and be kind to themselves. 

And I’d love you to join me and be a founding member. Just click here and send your request to join. Can’t wait to meet you in the group.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/291435631816825/

Do it for you.