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Have you ever made it through the week with the same To Do list you started with?

If the answer is yes, and you’d like to change that, the time has come to ask yourself some honest questions.

Emergencies happen.  People get sick.  The unexpected occurs, but not every week.  If your week ends this way more often than not, you may need a new approach.

Try asking yourself the following questions:

1) Do you keep a running list of “To Do” items?

The number one reason things don’t get done, is that people forget to do them.  Well, maybe that’s just my house.  However, I promise this will help you too.  Notice I say one list, not many lists.

If you’re tech savvy, great.  There are more application than I can shake a stick at.  I love my iPhone Reminder List.

If that’s not for you, a good old binder will do the trick.  From that list, move weekly and daily tasks to your calendar.

2) Are your goals broken down into easily understood tasks that can carried out a few at a time?

This will ensure things get done.  Often we just stall out when we don’t know what to do next.

3) Is saying yes to everything your Kryptonite?

Remember the emergency airplane evacuation analogy.  In order to be of use to others, you must first save yourself.  Depending on propriety, learn to say, “No,” “Not right now,” or “I’m trying to meet a deadline.  Can this wait?”

4) Are you a procrastinator?

Most of us are, some are just better than others. There’s a fun book on the subject called Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy.  The book includes lots of suggestions to get moving.  As the title suggests, sometimes it’s best to get those icky tasks done first.  It makes the rest of the day so much brighter.

5) How much time do you spend reading and responding to phone calls and e-mail?

Try limiting e-mail to two times per day.  Turn the audible alert off too.  Limit calls to what you feel is realistic without impacting your business.  If you’re in the middle of reading or analyzing a project that requires critical thinking and you stop to respond to something else, it takes eight to twelve minutes to achieve critical thought again.  It’s more efficient for you to finish what you started.  Then, return the call when you are able to focus on the caller’s needs.  This also minimizes mistakes.

6) Do you spend a lot of time looking for things?

An inefficient filing system (whether electronic or paper) can be a productivity killer.  Investing just a few hours of time in a simple system will pay you back may times over.  You should be able to put your hands on information in minutes.

7) Have you ever been called a perfectionist?  (I have and I was quite pleased until realizing it wasn’t a compliment.)

It has pros and cons.  Here are some examples of it backfiring:  Wanting things perfect can cause a backlog of filing. A perfectionist may only file when he or she has time for the whole project.  A perfectionist can cause projects to stall out while they gather all the information to make the best decision.  Perfectionism can also cause missed deadlines due to overworking details.  At a certain point efficiency is lost.  My motto for the true perfectionist is, done is better than perfect.

I’ve heard it said that no one gets to the end of their life and wishes they worked more.  So, use your time wisely and mindfully.  Save it for friends and family.  If anything gets in your way, consider hiring a Professional Organizer.