Redoing the To Do List

by Jini Stolk

My To Do List has become a nag…an irritant…even a scold, as items so hopefully added reappear day after guilt-filled day. Blame me or blame the list?

This year I’m going to try something different. Microsoft project management specialist J.D. Meier, as reported by Harvey Schachter in The Globe and Mail’s Monday Morning Manager, recommends focusing on outcomes instead of tasks. At the start of each week he lists the three most important “wins” he is seeking, followed by goals and tasks. “This helps me set a target for success. Writing it down…frees my mind to focus on where my attention is needed most.”

This way of thinking can be applied by day, week, month, or more – and, he says, can even transform staff meetings, motivating by concentrating on end results rather than lists of chores.

Sounds exciting.