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Checklists Can Magically Improve Your Productivity and Focus

Checklists Can Improve Your Productivity and FocusOf course, you won’t really get magical results by using a checklist.

But it can get pretty close.

I remember when I was creating my first online course.

There were so many parts to develop that I was getting overwhelmed by it all.

I didn’t really know where to start.

So I did what people typically do when they’re overwhelmed.

I started letting myself get distracted.

  • What would be the best way to produce my videos?
  • Should I host them on Youtube?

Well, many Youtube accounts get cancelled without notice.

So then I’d lose all my course content.

Maybe I should find private hosting.

But it might be better to just get a backup hard drive to store my raw video footage.

Would that slow down my site, though?

I guess I should reconsider my hosting plan.

How many gigabytes or whatever they’re called?

And, oh… what’s bandwidth, by the way?

This is how my whole production effort was getting totally screwed up.

Because I didn’t know the “magic” of putting one foot before the other.

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First, I threw up my hands in frustration.

Sure, it would be easy to just quit and start something else instead.

Square One

But then, I decided to take a deep breath and go back to square one.

That’s when I wrote up my first “productivity schedule.”

And that’s really nothing more than a checklist.

Yes, it’s well documented that using a checklist will drastically improve both your productivity and focus.

And we bloggers need to do everything possible to be more productive and to sharpen our focus.

Some of our biggest problems are getting distracted and feeling overwhelmed by all the things we need to accomplish.

Distraction comes from hearing and seeing too many things online that tear us into different directions.

Overwhelm results in losing focus on what needs to be done in order to progress and move on to the next step toward our big goal.

Distraction and overwhelm result in losing focus on doing those things we need to do to be successful bloggers.

So checklists are critical to building our blogging business to the extent that they help us get past both distraction and overwhelm.

This is where the magic of the checklist comes to the rescue.

Focus

The first thing a checklist does is to help us focus on the task at hand.

Blogging involves many moving parts.

If even the tiniest, seemingly insignificant part is overlooked, our whole blogging Method of Operation breaks.

And when our Method of Operation breaks, our blog falls down.

So how can we be sure to carefully give each part our full attention?

Well, we can get some excellent insights from a Harvard Medical professor.

Atul Gawande is a staff surgeon at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

His blockbuster book “The Checklist Manifesto – How To Get Things Right” is about the importance of using a checklist in surgery.

Gawande Checklist ManifestoContinue reading the above excerpt of Gawande’s “Checklist Manifesto.”

Gawande talks about how surgeries could be compromised by omitting or glossing over even the tiniest element in the process.

Just think…

One tiny little thing gets overlooked or done haphazardly during surgery.

Not a pretty result at the end of the process.

The Checklist Solution

That’s why Gawande concluded that in order to focus on what’s most important each step of the way, surgeons really need to have a checklist.

Now, our blogs may not present life or death situations.

But everything we do (or fail to do) can lead to the life or death of our blogging business.

Have you ever left out a critical part to your blogging?

Or, have you not given enough focus to it?

Working with so many bloggers, I can pretty much assure you that there’s always something that gets left behind.

Or, there’s something that gets left undone or not done well enough.

This happens to all of us.

It’s easy to do.

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Like I said, there are just so many many moving parts in a blog.

And, do you know what I usually find?

The Weak Link In The Chain

It’s always the one weak link that undermines the overall chain of progression in our blogging business.

The one we didn’t think was so important.

Or the one we just didn’t like doing, or wouldn’t take the time to learn.

Gawande found this was the case with surgery, too.

He found that it was so easy for a surgeon to fail to do just one little thing.

Unfortunately, that one little thing could make a major difference in the surgical outcome.

That’s when he started to use a checklist during surgery.

Gawande Checklist Manifesto

Read more here… http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122226184

He encouraged other surgeons to use the checklist.

Many of them balked at the idea, though.

And for many of the same reasons that my blogging students don’t want to “slow down” for even a moment to plot their course.

What do you think about using a checklist in your blogging?

Do you think that it is just too much work, too much red tape, or too silly?

It’s possible that you simply don’t like to admit that you’re less than able to effectively handle everything that comes your way, every hour and every day.

You prefer to believe that you…

  • can handle everything,
  • don’t need assistance,
  • can do fine without a standard “method of operation”,
  • don’t need a checklist to remind you to do everything correctly and accurately.

Yet, it is probably a struggle to make sure that everything is working on all fronts, and at all times.

This is what Gawande found when he tried to get surgeons to use a checklist.

Many of them believed that they didn’t need them.

That they could do just as well without them.

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Yet, the vast majority of them to did start implementing this process.

Gawande found that among that group, far fewer mistakes were committed during surgery.

So, my blogging friends…

Maybe you’ll find

  • you will make fewer mistakes
  • you’ll manifest fewer weaknesses
  • fewer key parts to your blogging business will be left unattended

…if you start using a checklist.

You can learn more about Dr. Gawande and “The Checklist Manifesto” on his website…

http://atulgawande.com/book/the-checklist-manifesto/

Productivity

Can using a simple checklist really improve your productivity?

Having a checklist is one thing.

Having an effective checklist is quite another.

checklists increase productivitychecklists increase productivity

Read more here… https://www.shopify.com/content/113666694-how-checklists-can-increase-your-productivity

If you feel overwhelmed in your business, it could be that you just have too many things to do.

Adding insult to injury, you don’t have an organized way of tending to all those things.

Creating a checklist, though, can help you make sure that the most important things get done first.

It’s really important to avoid just being busy doing a bunch of stuff that feels like work, or gets misinterpreted as progress.

You have to prioritize your “bunch of stuff” so that the critical pieces do not go unattended.

This helps you to spend more time on the important things, and less time on the relatively insignificant things.

And it may help you to do the most important things first.

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That’s really important because, believe me, if you have 7 things to do in your business today…

… the first three are going to be most likely to get completed.

And they are the ones that will be done the best.

As the day wears on, you get tired, lose focus and start rushing through things more.

So…

using a checklist may not help you get more things done, but it will go a long way to making your day more productive.

When that happens, you’ll be getting the greatest results for the least amount of effort.

Clarify Your Goals

A checklist also helps you clarify your goals, and that alone will go a long way to improving your productivity.

Did you ever spend a lot of time in front of your computer and feel like you accomplished nothing?

Chances are you didn’t.

Work does not equal production.

But, not only that.

There’s also an “invisible” component to productivity.

As you get to check things off your checklist, you actually gain confidence and motivation.

Confidence and motivation are essential to building the momentum you will need to make your blogging business grow and prosper.

Motivation and momentum keep you being productive instead of just busy.

To make sure your checklist is effective, keep these few things in mind.

  • Do the most urgent tasks first
  • Be realistic about how much you can do in a day
  • Give each task a strict time allotment + deadline
  • Write your list every day, and
  • Keep it in a place that you have easy access to.

Adhering to this checklist keeps you motivated and forward thinking.

The only alternative is continuing to feel overwhelmed and feel like you’re always falling behind.

You can learn more about this process here…

https://www.shopify.com/content/113666694-how-checklists-can-increase-your-productivity

Magic

The real magic of working with checklist is in creating a fun environment that creates momentum.

And it rewards you as you reach specific milestones on your way toward big goals.

This is a process similar to what psychologists call a “token system.”

It is based on token rewards for each positive action.

That is why it is a tactic broadly identified as “positive reinforcement.”

In the digital world, it’s more generally referred to as “gamification.”

psychology of checklistspsychology of checklistspsychology of checklists

Read more here… https://blog.trello.com/the-psychology-of-checklists-why-setting-small-goals-motivates-us-to-accomplish-bigger-things

See…

when you plot realistic and achievable milestone tasks mapped out on your daily checklist, you are setting yourself up to succeed.

Every time you complete a task well done, you get to check it off on your list.

Hence the name “checklist.”

Checklist Psychology

It’s a list of things you must do to keep your blogging business on track.

But it doesn’t feel like hard work because each time you check something off, your brain actually releases a chemical substance called dopamine.

Dopamine is psychologically associated with experiencing pleasure.

So, a checklist makes it fun to achieve your goals, not hard work or drudgery.

But it also makes you aware that you are capable of achieving anything you set your mind to.

As you succeed at one task and check it off, then go on to the next and check it off, task after task…

you are building up a series of successful events.

These are not only pleasurable, fun and rewarding, but they get you into the habit of succeeding.

Program Yourself To Succeed

They also instill in you a sense of motivation.

And, they give you confidence that you can actually do this.

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Your brain is telling you that you can and will succeed.

In fact, you are re-training your brain and programming it to succeed.

Make this process your consistent method of operation, and you are on the path to success.

Now, this won’t work so great if you make your checklist too detailed, or if you make it too complicated.

You see, unless your tasks are realistic and manageable, you cannot actually accomplish them consistently, on a daily basis.

Avoid Failure Programming

Likewise, you are bound to failure if you grossly underestimate the amount of time that it will take to accomplish things.

When you fill your checklist with tasks you really can’t complete effectively or consistently, the opposite of forming a success habit will happen.

You will, instead, start believing that you cannot get things done.

The overwhelm will start seeming very real.

You’ll begin to feel like

  • you really have too much on your plate,
  • that you’ll never be able to catch up,
  • you’re always falling behind, and
  • you just can’t do it.

You see, that may be where you’re at right now…

programming yourself to fail instead of succeed… day after day after day.

You go to bed feeling defeated and bruised.

  • Like you didn’t do half of what you intended to.
  • The harder you work, the further behind you fall.
  • Tomorrow will be yet another day of failure.
  • Meanwhile, everyone around you seems to be succeeding.

Does that sound familiar?

Checklists Can Magically Improve Your Productivity and Focus

You can change things now.

Starting today.

That’s the magic of using a checklist, and using it wisely.

So make sure that your productivity checklist is realistic and achievable on a day-to-day basis.

Every day you should be able to go to bed feeling good about the fact that you actually accomplished important things.

That will go a long way to ensuring that you accomplish your overall goals in the long run.

My Case Study

Okay, before I cut this off…

I want to finish my sad story (heehee) of feeling like I could never complete my training course.

So, here’s where I left off.

I put an end to trying to create a big course.

Instead of falling victim to despair, I set up a checklist.

I called it my production schedule because that’s really what it was.

So, Here’s What I Did

I outlined everything I wanted to cover in my course.

Notice, I “outlined” the topics.

That means I used just a short phrase for each topic, not a big write up.

I ended up with a full course broken down into 6 main modules.

Doing The Math

Each module had 3 sections.

So, that was 18 sections.

I scheduled myself via my checklist, to create one section each day for 18 consecutive days.

Then I did it!

  • Day 1, I shot a video demonstrating my first training.
  • Day 2, I shot a video demonstrating my second training.
  • Etc.

After 18 days, my course was no longer a work in progress.

It was completed.

Yayyy 🙂

And here’s the thing.

Momentum Happens

As I moved from day to day through my checklist, things did not get harder… they got easier.

I was on a roll.

Building up steam and piling up momentum.

In fact, by the time I was done, I was like a runaway train.

I moved on to the next course, then the next.

I created something like 2 dozen courses in about a year.

I’ve slowed down nowadays because

  • I did all the main training I wanted to at the time, and now they exist as perpetual, evergreen digital assets
  • I started doing less information-based training, and now do much more interactive group training and individual mentoring.

For those aspects of my business, different things must get done.

So, now I work with different checklists that keep me motivated and moving… always forward.

top tier coaching

Now that you see how checklists can magically improve your productivity and focus, I would like to hear how you plan on using them.

I hope this article will help you to do exactly that.

So, now tell me in the comments section below…

  • Have you used checklists in the past?
  • Did I inspire you to start utilizing them now?
  • How do you think it will it change your business and your life if you can actually improve your productivity and focus?

Don’t forget to share this article on your social sites so that all your contacts can benefit from it.

Talk soon,

-Donna

 

Donna Merrill
Donna is a well known blogger and creator of "Blogging Magic" - an intensive guide to blogging. "Blogging Magic" is for beginners who are trying to figure out how to bring their blogs to life with tons of visits, comments and social media interaction. It's even for advanced bloggers looking to reach new levels of authority and engagement with their audience.

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44 Responses to Checklists Can Magically Improve Your Productivity and Focus

  1. Nishant
    Twitter:
    August 9, 2017 at 7:34 am #

    Hello, Donna. Autul Gawandaes case study was awesome.

    Check lists are an amazing way to keep us on track, never to overlook or miss a viral procedure regardless of how overwhelmed we are. Checklists are quite commonly used in the aviation field. An engine start up checklist, an engine restart checklist, a landing checklist, etc. It helps an individual to productively invest his limited time in a much efficient way. It shows a plan based on statistical probabilities. A checklist also helps in planning and scheduling work-packages more efficiently.
    Nishant recently posted..Digital Transformation – Need for Business Entities to Cope with this TransitionMy Profile

  2. Lesly T Federici
    Twitter:
    August 7, 2017 at 10:44 am #

    Hi Donna,
    You have to grab yourself, and sit down and “outline” what you want to accomplish. Goals can always change, but it’s a beginning to get you on track. Wonderful post – checklists are a great, and a smart method of accountability as well. In the hospital and in the OR, and with Nursing Care plans, there are checklists which help to anchor your actions so everything is covered and done right, and mistakes are caught. I am an avid checklist creator ….
    Lesly T Federici recently posted..Inspire Your Audience With Your Pinterest BoardsMy Profile

    • Donna Merrill August 7, 2017 at 1:37 pm #

      Hi Lesly,

      So good to know you are an avid checklist creator! When it comes to working in a hospital and the OR there has to be a checklist otherwise ….well the worst can happen hugh?

      Yep, Grab yourself, sit down and outline what is needed to be accomplished. Indeed goals can change so be flexible. But each goal has tons of tasks to do. Each time I check it off, I feel wonderful!

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  3. DeAnna Troupe
    Twitter:
    August 6, 2017 at 10:08 pm #

    What a great post. I think I’m slightly addicted to checklists. They do help with productivity, especially for people with ADD.d
    DeAnna Troupe recently posted..5 Tips For Creating Compelling Subject LinesMy Profile

  4. Dr. Erica Goodstone
    Twitter:
    August 6, 2017 at 8:27 pm #

    Donna,
    For me this is a no-brainer.
    I am forever creating checklists – and I love crossing items off the list.
    My favorite way to do this is with a computer program called Sticky notes.
    The sticky notes sit on my desktop, in different colors. Each one has a list of items to be done.
    One has a list of my dreams/longterm goals to glance at.
    One has a list of steps for my most current project.
    One has a list of items that need attention when I can get to them, issues with various web sites, etc.
    One has a list of promo dates for the summits on which I am speaking or ones that I am hosting.;

    Warmly,
    Dr. Erica

    • Donna Merrill August 7, 2017 at 1:29 pm #

      Hi Erica,

      I love the way you color code your sticky-notes! What a great way to get organized. My husband does that but doesn’t color code them. I think that is why he forgets things to do he he he.

      My daughter does the same as you do and is so organized she is like a machine when she has a project to do.

      For me, I’m so old fashioned….I like to have a pretty notebook and write things down there. When I wrote this article, I went back a few years and found my pink shiny notebook of checklists. Back then I thought it was such a struggle to get through but now it has become a habit.

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  5. Kathryn Maclean
    Twitter:
    August 6, 2017 at 6:55 pm #

    Hi Donna,
    This is BIG. It’s like you write about what I am doing, or not doing at the time – with setting up my first course. It’s been sitting on thinkific waiting for me.
    Now I have some ideas for it. I counted and saved 4 other article links that interested me from this one post. You are so good. I do love your articles!.

    • Donna Merrill August 7, 2017 at 1:23 pm #

      Hi Kathryn,

      I am thrilled that you liked this article. A way back when I did my first digital product, I had to learn very quickly how to do checklists. My mentor would hold me accountable for getting things done on time. Wow…when I think of it I feel like it was a boot camp! But I now apply it to everything I do….even walking the dogs lol.

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  6. Chery Schmidt
    Twitter:
    August 6, 2017 at 6:29 pm #

    Hello Donna! As always, you did an Amazing job with this post! And it is so true! With a list, things do get either left behind. or put to the side for a later date. I for one would be lost without my to do lists..

    Great reminder..
    Thank You
    Chery :))
    Chery Schmidt recently posted..What Is An Aspiring Entrepreneur?My Profile

  7. Donna Merrill August 6, 2017 at 3:53 pm #

    HI Alicia,

    Thanks much.

    I’d love to hear from you down the road, as to the results you get from implementing this in your business 🙂

    -Donna
    Donna Merrill recently posted..Welcome – How Is This Blog Different?My Profile

  8. Alicia Osmera August 6, 2017 at 8:59 am #

    Hi Donna,

    Thanks for your tips.

  9. Taiwo
    Twitter:
    August 5, 2017 at 1:39 am #

    Hi Donna,
    Thanks for this wonderful post. It opens my eyes to why we easily get distracted, feel overwhelmed and lose focus. Indeed, if we must succeed, the use of checklist is critical because success is a progressive realization of a worthwhile goal. Every task accomplished on the list, moves us closer to the ultimate goal.

    • Donna Merrill August 6, 2017 at 3:51 pm #

      Hi Taiwo,

      You are absolutely correct here.

      A checklist keeps you on target with what you call quote your worthwhile goals.

      It keeps you moving forward toward that goal… step by step.

      Without a checklist, you just might keep spinning around in an endless circle that goes nowhere.

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..Welcome – How Is This Blog Different?My Profile

  10. Susan Velez
    Twitter:
    August 4, 2017 at 3:44 pm #

    Hi Donna,

    I love it I am always looking for more ways to be more productive. I’ve been wanting to create another Ebook, but with freelancing and my blog, it definitely makes it a little challenging.

    I think I need to sit down and create a checklist so I can get things done more productively.

    Congrats on completing that many courses in such a short amount of time. It’s great to see your hard work pay off.

    Thanks for sharing these tips, I am going to start using checklists to see if I can be more productive.

    Have a great day 🙂

    Susan

    • Donna Merrill August 6, 2017 at 3:47 pm #

      Hi Susan,

      It does make you much more productive when you are using checklist.

      Of course, you have to keep checking things off, lol.

      That means it keeps you focused on accomplishing things and getting used to completing things.

      Productive things, not just “busy work” like organizing your desktop or making Facebook comments.

      That’s so important when you’re running a blogging business.

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..Welcome – How Is This Blog Different?My Profile

  11. Gaurav kumar
    Twitter:
    August 4, 2017 at 10:30 am #

    Hi Donna,

    This is what I learned during my school days. Since then I am a great believer of making checklists of to do things and it really helped to boost my productivity.

    Checklists really help to improved the productivity of blogging business also.

    Gaurav
    Gaurav kumar recently posted..How Much it Cost to Start a Self Hosted WordPress BlogMy Profile

  12. Edward Thorpe
    Twitter:
    August 4, 2017 at 8:26 am #

    Hi Donna,

    Epic post. Brilliantly written sales copy for your consultant business organically couched within a useful piece of evergreen content – well done!

    As for checklists, they not only help you prioritize your work, they can ease stress and help you get to sleep without worrying about how you’ll get tomorrow’s tasks done.

    Edward
    Edward Thorpe recently posted..6 Amazing Benefits of Meditation That You Should KnowMy Profile

  13. Ravi Chahar
    Twitter:
    August 4, 2017 at 2:04 am #

    Hey Donna,

    I always keep the checklist and do my tasks accordingly. But the list you have mentioned about including the productivity, the magic etc are worth reading.

    People should apply these in their daily business schedule. I always look for better options and you’re here with some interesting facts.
    Thanks for sharing with us.

    Enjoy your day.
    ~Ravi
    Ravi Chahar recently posted..How to Add a Real WordPress Cron Job for a Faster WebsiteMy Profile

  14. jagmohan singh negi August 3, 2017 at 10:11 am #

    Hi Mam it’s my first time on your blog.i read your comment on shoutmeloud and it was really impressive.
    Your blogging style is as simeller as Harsh Agarwal.
    Anyways thanks for your informative article.

    • Donna Merrill August 4, 2017 at 8:31 am #

      Hi and Welcome to my blog!

      It is so great that you came over from shoutmeloud from my comment. Wow wha a great compliment that my blogging style is similar as Harsh.

      I give information that people can use. I try to make things simple to do. Hope to see you around.

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  15. Shantanu Sinha
    Twitter:
    August 3, 2017 at 1:37 am #

    Hello Donna,

    Great shout here 🙂

    Checklist are awesome things, they can help us managed our task stressful.

    Through my own experience, I have been doing it lately, earlier I didn’t paid much attention, but I saw every one else around
    me does that and they are pretty happy by their results. I give it a try and it turned for me a win win situation.

    Its always better to be planned for our future, things need to be improvise and get it done at the time or before dead line.
    Every day there are thousand of thoughts revolving in my head. I do not know which one of them should I bring in acion.

    Its always better to our homework before getting up for something. High time it is.

    Thanks for the share

    Shantanu
    Shantanu Sinha recently posted..13 Tips for Choosing a Domain Name – 2017 EditionMy Profile

    • Donna Merrill August 4, 2017 at 8:29 am #

      Hi Shantanu,

      Checklist do help especially if you are the kind of person with thousands of thoughts in your head. I know…I’m one of them. I used to let those thoughts distract me until……I started writing things down.

      Of course I like to “Eat the frog” i.e. doing the most important thing first even if I don’t want to every day lol. Without a checklist available, I can get stuck, unfocused, waste time.

      Now I have been using it for some time and able to get so much done that I create my “me” time whereby I can do anything I want. It feels so great!

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  16. Elise Cohen Ho
    Twitter:
    August 3, 2017 at 1:20 am #

    I am such a huge fan of lists. They help me to stay focused and on task while keeping track of what still needs to be accomplished.
    Elise Cohen Ho recently posted..5 Reasons to Switch to Natural RemediesMy Profile

  17. Rachel Lavern
    Twitter:
    August 2, 2017 at 9:07 pm #

    Hi Donna,

    I learned while in college that I was unable to effectively handle everything that comes my way, every hour and every day. I have been living with some sort of checklist every single day except when on vacation. I use them both in my business and personal life. I create routine checklists that contain all the steps/tasks needed to complete my projects and processes. Of course, this type of list of tasks never changes and I will use them over and over again each time I do that particular process/project.

    While the checklist may sound, well, awfully routine,

    I used them when in Corporate America also I realize that many people keep them on apps; however, I still enjoy writing mine.

    I also live by my ‘To Do’ lists 🙂
    Rachel Lavern recently posted..Confidence is a ChoiceMy Profile

    • Donna Merrill August 3, 2017 at 7:53 am #

      Hi Rachel,

      Doesn’t your checklist make you feel great when you have completed those tasks? I sure it does. When it does become a routine, that is the cherry on the cake.

      I do see so many people keeping them on apps, my husband does that too. But I rather use my little pink notebook and writing it down on paper. It just gives it a different feel.

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  18. Andrew M. Warner
    Twitter:
    August 2, 2017 at 4:38 pm #

    Hey Donna,

    Great post. Check lists are really important. I never use to do them at all and was all over the place as a result. When I eventually tried it, I was kicking myself at the thought that I never thought of doing it sooner.

    More so, when writing posts, I use an outline (which is sort of a checklist) and it has drastically helped me.

    Great stuff here on a great topic.

    – Andrew

  19. Sonal Talwar
    Twitter:
    August 2, 2017 at 4:35 am #

    Hi Donna,

    Checklists no doubt can improve our productivity and focus. With the checklist in hand, we are sorted out with what to do and what not.

    Great tips!

    Thanks for sharing!
    Sonal Talwar recently posted..Friendship Day: True Friendship is a Priceless TreasureMy Profile

  20. Ben
    Twitter:
    August 1, 2017 at 8:18 pm #

    Hi Donna. I’ve always use to-do lists to keep track of all the things that I want to do. I started using checklists as well about a month ago to break down a few of my regular tasks. Like you said, when there are so many things to do it is easy to get overwhelmed or forget to do something.

    There are so many things you have to do around publishing a post on your blog. SEO, image, alt text, call to action, meta- this, that and the other. Then you can publish. Share it on social media, promote it on places like Triberr and VCB. It’s difficult to keep track of it all without a checklist.

    I called my checklists “recipes.” I must have had chocolate chip cookies in the back of my mind when I did it 😉
    Ben recently posted..How to Get Great Tasting WaterMy Profile

    • Donna Merrill August 2, 2017 at 4:13 pm #

      Hi Ben,

      We all have so much to do that it is impossible to keep it all in our head. It just leads to overwhelm. It feels so good to write it down on paper. It gets off the head on onto the paper. Then when crossing it out…Woo Hoo…such a great feeling.

      I like the way you call your checklists “recipes”

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  21. Ryan Biddulph
    Twitter:
    August 1, 2017 at 6:23 pm #

    GREAT stuff Donna. You rocked it out with your course because you worked off of a checklist, an outline.

    I love working from outlines. From my blogging courses, to eBooks, to even outlining my day, my productivity and focus continues to improve because working from lists or outlines creates order in my mind. This is the benefit. This is the chief sell. I have some 60,000 thoughts daily. Like all humans. If I don’t make steps or outlines tangible, chaos ensues. But when I see and touch a few things to do, the order, clarity and calm I achieve is about miraculous compared to my old, chaotic self LOL.
    Ryan Biddulph recently posted..12 Steps To Build A Viral Online PresenceMy Profile

    • Donna Merrill August 2, 2017 at 9:35 am #

      Hi Ryan,

      I’m like you with a bazillion thoughts per day. If I don’t discipline myself and work from a checklist, I will flounder. I too was in the chaotic whirlwind back in the day. Everything I tried to do took too much time. But some years back, when I hired a mentor, I got whipped into shape. I even did hypnosis on focus. Now it becomes easy for me to jot down a checklist, and bang out a new article, or new course.

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  22. Monna Ellithorpe
    Twitter:
    August 1, 2017 at 1:54 pm #

    Hi Donna,

    Perfect post for me today. I’m very soon going to be working on my first course and I don’t mind telling you it was becoming a little bit scary, not knowing exactly how to start. Your suggestions will work perfectly for me.

    I’ve used checklists off and on but soon fall away from it, thinking I could keep up and remember everything. Guess what? This ole gal can’t remember everything anymore.

    Thank you so much for the great suggestions and ideas. Have a great week.
    Monna Ellithorpe recently posted..Take Good Care of YourselfMy Profile

    • Donna Merrill August 2, 2017 at 9:30 am #

      Hi Monna,

      With all the stuff we need to keep in our head, we cannot remember everything. When I did my first course, I had a huge checklist. My mentor had made me do that first and foremost.

      I felt like the gal in the image I’ve used lol. It was long. But it took me weeks to learn how to discipline myself. Now it became part of me and I do have my checklists and use them wisely.

      All the best to you on your first course.

      -Donna
      Donna Merrill recently posted..8 Expert Blogs Reveal How Passion Impacts Your Blogging BusinessMy Profile

  23. Manish Kumar
    Twitter:
    August 1, 2017 at 2:34 am #

    Hi Donna,

    Checklists do improve our productivity and focus

    Checklists will help us to know exactly what we have to do and further prioritizing it will crown the effect.

    Making checklists is a remedy for both distraction and overwhelming.

    Following your tips will certainly boost productivity and focus.

    Thanks a lot for sharing.

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