One of the greatest challenges that we all face in this crazy, busy, 21st Century world is an overabundance of “To-Dos.”

Have you ever written down a list of everything that you “need to get done,” and then just wanted to curl up in a ball and cry, throw yourself from your office window, or some other frighteningly drastic response?

This is a seemingly overwhelming challenge which every active member of our society faces, and you are not alone. With a recent survey of our community I discovered that one of the most significant pains is prioritizing everything on your plate. So, here’s the key… you CAN’T DO IT ALL TODAY! So, stop trying to do the impossible.

Too often I see people coming up with these “dream lists” with 10-20 things that they intend to accomplish today… then they only get 3 or 4 of them done and immediately start beating up on themselves for not having accomplished more.

So, they start again,  add the new stuff that’s come up during the day and recommit with great fervor to getting them all done tomorrow… and that doesn’t happen either. The cycle repeats and perpetuates itself… ad infinitum. *UGH*

Today is your day to break the cycle. Please do write everything down, but stop telling yourself that you’re going to do it all today. Get all those tasks out of your head, and then…

Choose One Thing

Choose the one thing on your list that would make the biggest difference to you and that you can COMMIT to accomplishing today. To help you… here are a few questions that may be useful for you:

What’s the one thing that I could do today that would…

• Move my work forward significantly?
• Make me feel proud of my achievement?
• Take care of the people that are important to me?
• Feel like a WIN?

I could offer a bunch more options… but whichever question resonates for you will do the trick. Or if there’s a guiding principle or core value that you want to act more consistently from, then craft that into an affirming question to guide your One Thing.

The point is to choose One Thing and COMMIT to getting it done today. This is a real commitment, as in I won’t go to bed tonight or leave work today without getting this One Thing DONE.

I know this sounds WAY too simple… just ONE thing? What? Is she crazy? But there are a bunch of secrets that make this a powerful practice.

1. It creates a sense of intentionality to your actions. You get to choose what’s most important for you each day.
2. By committing to your One Thing, you are putting your priorities first over whatever else might arise that day, which gives you a internal sense of power and control over your actions and decisions.
3. It gives you a clear focus to your energy, which is why I encourage you to do your One Thing as early in the day as possible. Knock it out, then celebrate! Give yourself the ability to WIN everyday (rather than feel like you’re losing everyday.)
4. By developing the habit of choosing your One Thing and consistently doing it, you are creating a pattern of behavior that shows that you get your priorities done consistently.
5. In creating that pattern of behavior, you are also establishing a new internal belief for yourself, a new program of thinking. You are giving yourself proof that you are someone who “gets stuff done.” If it’s important enough to get chosen as your One Thing, then you know that it will be done. You can count on yourself to make it happen.

Will you do other things in the course of the day? Of course you will! Some will come from your master list of To-dos, and some will arise naturally as you move through the day.

Usually, I recommend that you can choose up to 3 Bonuses to move on to once your One Thing is done for the day. Some days you’ll get all 4 things done, sometimes you’ll just get your One Thing and nothing else from your Bonus List done because the outside world took over. That’s OK! They’re bonuses for a reason, and on days like that there was almost assuredly a reason why the new stuff arising took precedence.

As long as you get your One Thing done each day, you stayed connected to your own priorities, and then you left adequate room for the inevitable flow of life.

Give choosing your One Thing each day a try! There’s so much power in this simple practice.