The Continuous To-Do List Strategy for Busy Women in Midlife

Dr. Christine Li [00:00:00]:
Welcome back to the Make Time for Success podcast. This is episode number 252. You probably know I'm all about everything. Productivity. I like to experiment, I like to explore. I like to try new tools and techniques just so that I can figure out how I can save a minute here or a minute there because I know that my time is super valuable, that time in general is super valuable and I will take any time savings that I can get. So today I'm going to teach you a to do list technique that I have been using recently. And I think it's simple, which is good for me because simple techniques oftentimes get maintained and it is also very easy to deploy.

Dr. Christine Li [00:00:51]:
So let's go listen to this technique together now.

Speaker B [00:01:00]:
Hi, I'm Dr. Christine Li and I'm a psychologist and a procrastination coach. I've helped thousands of people move past procrastination and overwhelm so they could begin working to their potential. In this podcast, you're going to learn powerful strategies for getting your mind, body and energy to work together so that you can focus on what's really important and accomplish the goals you want to achieve. When you start living within your full power, you're going to see how being productive can be easy and how you can create success on demand. Welcome to the Make Time for Success podcast.

Dr. Christine Li [00:01:43]:
So you know that I like to talk about ways to save time because time is so valuable and and because saving time oftentimes helps us to have more fun. I really like to blend productivity and having more fun because then I get to teach the same things to people. I get to show people how they can be productive, be more productive than they've been used to, while also having more fun than they're used to having. I think some of the trouble with productivity and sometimes falling into procrastination is that we make the mistake of thinking that if we force ourselves into getting things done, things will be better somehow. If we force ourselves to concentrate, then we'll concentrate better. I have found personally that the opposite is true. The more I'm having fun, the more I end up making sense, having a clear mind, being creative, and producing real results that I like to share with other people. And I'd like to have you consider that maybe you can release some of the pressure you've been putting on yourself so that you can have more room for real creativity, for real productivity and some spare time at the end as well to enjoy.

Dr. Christine Li [00:03:19]:
Today I'm going to teach you about a productivity technique that I have been using lately. You've heard on this podcast, if you've been following the show, that I've been using a journal lately. So it's an analog journal. It's in my hands right now and I've been using it this entire 2025 year. It's been a very new experience for me because I've always been a planner person but not a journaler. And because I'm spending so much time writing out my thoughts and spending time with this actual journal book, I have found that I've been writing my to do list in a continuous way. And that means I'm just doing one long stream of to do list tasks and keeping that list going. So that's why I'm calling it a continuous to do list.

Dr. Christine Li [00:04:19]:
Now is this special somehow? I'm not so sure, but it's been working for me. I think the reasons why it works is that it doesn't stress me out, it doesn't force me to recreate my to do list the next week or the next month because this to do list keeps going on and on and on. It makes me relaxed because I don't have to worry about forgetting anything on the list because after all, it's a continuous to do list and it's written down. And it also speeds up my own processing about what I have left to do in any given day. Because I can just glance at this continuous to do list, see what has been crossed off those finished items, and immediately jump to the next item on the list for consideration. I am not forced to do anything in particular. I'm not forced to proceed in any particular way. But I do have all my data in front of me ready to go.

Dr. Christine Li [00:05:25]:
And I do try to approach my continuous do list with a very open heart, like nobody's forcing me to get things done. I'm doing this for my own good, for my own wellbeing, for my own life. And I think that entire scenario of the continuous to do list and my own attitude about treating myself kindly when I'm trying to get things done works. It ends up leaving me with a state of relative flow where I'm not stopping and starting where I know what I need to do and I know that I don't need to pressure or force myself into anything to get anything done. So I'm wondering if you might try this out for yourself. This might solve the lots of different post its all over your office or home. It might solve the anxiety of forgetting things to do and it might make productivity a little bit more fun for you Today. So try it out.

Dr. Christine Li [00:06:29]:
Whatever you want to. Let me know. In terms of feedback about this technique, share it with me on Instagram. I'm procrastination coach there. You can always direct message me there about anything, but especially about the continuous to do list. I also thought I would add some general comments about working with a to do list so that you can up your game no matter how you choose to structure your own to do list. So here's the list of my general strategies for making your productivity go a lot more smoothly and more powerfully. The first one is do not put your feelings into your work.

Dr. Christine Li [00:07:14]:
And I think I need to explain that a little bit. I always tell my clients, save your feelings for the movie theater. Save your feelings for your relationships, Save your feelings for when you're doing creative writing, but do not put your feelings into your regular to do list items to the laundry to the having to write your next essay. If it's a nonfiction essay, just write it right. I think that's the tip. When we mix our feelings, both the good and the bad in our work, I think it slows us down. I think it causes us to feel in some ways more engaged with the work than we even need to. We need to be properly engaged, but safely engaged.

Dr. Christine Li [00:08:00]:
That means our hearts are protected. That means we are not going to yell at ourselves if we draw a blank when we're in the middle of writing an essay paragraph. That means we're going to have more fun getting things done because it's not a drain on our emotional system, our nervous system, the way we feel during the day. We can just say, oh, I'm getting this thing done. It's just very neutral, emotion free thing that you're doing. You have a list. Now you know what to do. The second idea I have for you is you're going to aim for speed.

Dr. Christine Li [00:08:36]:
I don't oftentimes talk about doing things quickly, but when we aim to do things more quickly again without that forcing and pressuring ourselves, then we end up having momentum. We end up having more time again at the end. And I think so often we slow ourselves down with thoughts of oh, this isn't good enough. Oh what is that person gonna say? Oh, what is that person doing? Oh, I need a cup of coffee. All these distracting, interfering thoughts end up slowing us down. So if you start your to do list item with the thought I'm going to do this as fast as I can, faster than I ever did before without sacrificing any quality, I think you're going to end up feeling really empowered and really like you just found a trick to productivity. I use this as often as I can. Whenever I have the energy to do something more quickly, you know I'm going to be there.

Dr. Christine Li [00:09:37]:
Tip number three is you always want to think about the end results. You always want to keep your eye on how am I going to feel? This is where you put your feelings in the to do list. How am I going to feel when I get all of this done? It feels overwhelming now when I look at it and it's the brand new list and there seems to be a lot on it and of different categories and varieties, but I am going to feel so proud of myself when I do half. I'm going to just think I'm getting to the next level in my schoolwork or with my family or with my decluttering project. Whatever it is that you're dreaming about, dream about it as if you've already achieved it and then go dig into your to do list and go get those things done. Tip number four is do not criticize yourself if you haven't tackled your entire list. Because after all, you made the list. You're the owner of the list.

Dr. Christine Li [00:10:41]:
You're the boss of your life. It is okay to say I did my best today and I didn't get to all of the things. When you make it a habit to be kind to yourself and to forgive yourself for what you were not able to do, you get to start the next day with a full tank, with a full emotional tank. Instead of feeling like you have something to make up for or that you're actually stuck on yesterday's to do list instead of today's to do list. You're not stuck in that heavier, more negative frame of mind. And you know I'm all about positivity. So let's get your mindset about the to do list. To be straight, positive, straightforward and success looking.

Dr. Christine Li [00:11:29]:
And then you will find you could do it more quickly, you could do it more cleanly, and whatever you end up doing at the end of the day is going to be enough. I have two more for you. The fifth tip is you're going to celebrate everything you've crossed off on your continuous to do list. I didn't mention when I was describing how I do my continuous to do list, but what I do is I put a line straight through the item that I've completed. You can still read what it was, but I do cross it off with a horizontal line to indicate this is completely done, taken care of. It's dusted so you can do that too. You might prefer a checklist if you'd rather read your list clearly. In hindsight, totally no problem.

Dr. Christine Li [00:12:19]:
But do something to indicate that it's time to celebrate. Check. I get to celebrate. Check. I get to take a break. Check. I get to feel not worried about how this is going to turn out because this is all completed. Have fun.

Dr. Christine Li [00:12:36]:
Don't just be a workhorse, because I think workhorses don't have as much fun. Make sure you celebrate. Make sure you mark your progress and your improvement and then pat yourself on the back. The last tip I have for you is to remember to keep an eye on all the different areas of your life, because a to do list can just feel like the mundane things like laundry or picking up the medications or whatever you have on your list. But I want you to remember to also keep in mind what you want for your next vacation, what you want for your finances, what you want to do for your health, what you want to do for your relationships. Who do you need to send a hello message to what might be missing? You want to put those things on your to do list items and list as well so that you feel again, not deprived by productivity. But you turn that around and you think to yourself, whenever I put pen to paper or I get into action, I'm creating the life that I really want to live for myself. I am making this my best life.

Dr. Christine Li [00:13:55]:
One to do list item at a time. Or maybe a clump of them at a time when you get really good at this. So I hope you've enjoyed this episode and this reminder that small steps and small tweaks to how you do things can really yield important and big rewards for you. You can change any habit that you feel has been dragging you down tomorrow. You can even change it before the end of this day. And make sure you do that with the positive mindset, with kindness to yourself, and with the full belief that anything you want is possible. If you'd like a free download to go with this episode so that you can try out the continuous to do list, maybe map it out on a piece of paper first before you put it in a journal, feel free to go to maketimeforsuccesspodcast.com/todo again, it's maketimeforsuccesspodcast.com/todo t o D O I will share that worksheet with you. And again, if you'd like to share your thoughts about this episode with me, bring it on.

Dr. Christine Li [00:15:14]:
Send me those comments. I'd love to start a conversation with you. I will see you next week. I have a special guest next week. Her name is Lori Reynoldson and she's an amazing guest. I can't wait to share that episode with you too. Bye.

Speaker B [00:15:29]:
Thank you for listening to this episode of the Make Time for Success podcast. If you enjoyed what you've heard, you can subscribe to make sure you get notified of upcoming episodes. You can also Visit our website maketimefosuccesspodcast.com for past episodes, show notes and all the resources we mention on the show. Feel free to connect with me over on Instagram too. You can find me me there under the name Procrastination Coach. Send me a DM and let me know what your thoughts are about the episodes you've been listening to and let me know any topics that you might like me to talk about on the show. I'd love to hear all about how you're making Time for Success. Talk to you soon.