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Are You A Victim of To-Do List Trauma? 🤷♀️🥹
Have you ever had something on your to-do list for so long that it self-resolved? 😏 Let me explain. I'm not exactly proud of this, but once upon a time, I had some "special" tasks lingering on my to-do list for years. YEARS, people. 🤦♀️ They might as well have been carved onto stone tablets in Latin! Take my goal of burning all my digital photos to DVD, for example. That task sat there for so long that by the time I was ready to tackle it, cloud storage 🌨️ had swooped in and made DVDs...
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Have you ever had something on your to-do list for so long that it self-resolved? 😏 Let me explain. I’m not exactly proud of this, but once upon a time, I had some “special” tasks lingering on my to-do list for years. YEARS, people. 🤦♀️ They might as well have been carved onto stone tablets in Latin! Take my goal of burning all my digital photos to DVD, for example. That task sat there for so long that by the time I was ready to tackle it, cloud storage 🌨️ had swooped in and made DVDs obsolete. Poof! 🌬️💥 Problem solved… by technology! And don’t get me started on that task to update that MySpace profile; this task lingered until, well, MySpace didn’t. 🙈
The worst part? I spent years seeing these ancient relics of tasks written down, secretly stressing and beating myself up for never tackling them. Why? Because they were on the list. But think about it. Turns out, I gave myself all that stress…for Nothing, Nada. Zip!! 😫 This brings me to an important point, and I warn you, the following may be shocking: To-do lists can be a form of needless trauma. I’m not talking about everyday to-do’s like errands or recurring duties like grocery shopping, putting out the trash, bathing the dog, 🐶🫧or non-negotiables like that work project. Sure, that stuff needs doing, like it or not. ⌛ I’m talking about what I call “special” to-do’s. You know the ones. The tasks no one really cares about, except for maybe you, the tasks that have been on the list since the dawn of time. 🧐 For example, you might think you need to clean out the extra closet 🚪, sort through your sock drawer 🧦, purge your wardrobe 👗, repaint that garden statue 🎨, or maybe even organize your photos 📸. Oh, and don’t forget to rearrange your jewelry collection 💍 or finally conquer that kitchen junk drawer 🍴 (where random rubber bands and mystery keys go to retire). So, Where Are You on the To-Do List Trauma Spectrum? 🤔
If you’re a Chill Doer, proceed to the head of the class. 💯👏 If you’re an Overachiever, stay after the bell; let’s talk. 🙈 Here’s the thing: You think these tasks will spark pure joy once done, but somehow, the time or energy never shows up to do them! It’s curious because when was the last time you put off pure joy? (And I don’t want to be a nudge, but those “special” tasks may have to be redone in time, which means they circle back onto the “list”). 🤨 Good intentions, sure! Whether just a few “special” tasks or an entire to-do tornado, you put it down on a physical or mental list, planning that someday… someday… you’ll tackle them. 🙄 Let me preamble a question with one of my Grandmother’s favorite sayings (which I’ll clean up a bit and withhold a more graphic emoji). “Poop or get off the pot.” 🚽 (Yes, Grandma was a legend.) Are you going to do it or not? Hang in there. I’m in tough love 💜 mode right now. Seriously. There’s a tipping point. Here’s a radical idea: If the thought of those lingering “special” tasks is haunting you, bothering you, stressing you, then maybe—just maybe—it’s time to let it go. 🚮
Yes, I said it. Scratch it off the list. Remove it. Live happily with it the way it is. Turn the page, move on. 😲🫤🤨 🦗🦗🦗(insert sound of crickets….)🦗🦗🦗 But wait, Karla 🫸: “I really want to clean that closet one day. I’m tired of fearing an avalanche whenever I open the door!” Okay, if it’s really as important as you think, let’s face it, you’d do it. And when Aunt Fanny visits for the weekend, and that bedroom closet becomes hers, you will tackle it. 🏈😅 In the meantime, keep it off the list and off your mind because all it’s doing is staring you in the face and picking at your psyche. 🤌🧠 “But, Karla, 🛑 these are personal tasks, and those are important to me. Shouldn’t I put myself first?” Absolutely! Listen, the reason why you’re not completing the task is because you inherently know it doesn’t matter as much as you think it should. So take it off the list and stop subconsciously beating yourself up. When the need to get it done is imminent and essential, you’ll jump into action mode. I’m not saying never to complete the task. I’m saying don’t stockpile a plethora of tasks on a physical or mental list because that’s like your mother constantly nagging you to clean your room when you really just want to go out and play. 🩹🧹 “Uh, yeah….Karla?… I need my list.” 🧸 But do you? The problem comes when things loiter on the list, and you don’t get them done because, frankly, other things you ARE doing are either more critical or way more fun. And that’s OKAY! If that list (or thoughts of things undone) starts feeling like a never-ending attack of tasks you’re not ready to do and you may never need to do, it becomes a lingering undercurrent of stress in disguise. 📋🥹 Let it go. Now, take a moment and think about this: 💡 How many projects or tasks do you accomplish that were never on a list in the first place? Hint: they’re usually the most important ones. ✨ Things have a way of rising to the surface to happen organically. 🧬 Relax and Trust yourself. If a “special” task rises to the surface, ready to be done, you’ll do it whether it’s on a list or not. 😉 The squeaky wheel gets the grease! So my advice is to wait for the squeak before worrying about applying the oil! 📯 Final Thought 💭 You’re spot on if you think I’m nudging you to choose peace over becoming a to-do list’s loyal servant. You’ll know when it’s time to do something. In the meantime, let it go, choose freedom, and chill out! 😎✨ Until next time, fellow to-do conquerors! Your Coach & Professional Stress Buster (in training) 🥋😍
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