The Lists

Lists are a way for me to organize the blur of thoughts in my brain. They start as a brain dump, listing everything in the stream of consciousness. It doesn’t have to be organized or even make sense. Just get it all out on paper. If you’re like me, you’ll put it in a spreadsheet.

Once you have a big jumbled mess and your brain has quieted down, you start sorting the ideas. Which ideas are big, vague, or seemingly out of reach? These get sorted into long-term goals. Which ideas are smaller, one-time goals that you can do in a day or so? Those get shorted into short-term goals. Which are things that you just wish you were better at consistently? These are usually daily goals such as being better at keeping house (cleaning something, putting something away) and taking better care of yourself (showering, stretching, reading something).

Long-term Goal (The Focus for the Month): In January, Unpack all craft supplies and create an office/craft space.

Here’s my personal favorite, but it isn’t for everyone. I adore spreadsheets. I love organizing information and tracking progress. I tucked my three categories into a spreadsheet and personalized them with checkboxes and formulas that count how many boxes I’ve ticked off in a day and a month. Clicking a checkbox or crossing something off a physical to-do list gives your brain a small shot of dopamine. Dopamine is one of the feel-good chemicals that train us to do a thing because it feels good.

My tracking spreadsheet tallies up every time I check a checkbox. The counts are split into long-term, short-term, and daily tasks. This gives me a clear view of how successfully I edged the needle toward becoming who I want to be and what I want in life.

How did my lists turn out? By the start of 2025, my biggest, seemingly out-of-reach dream was to have a business that would support myself and my family instead of a job working for someone else; this became the goal for 2025.

The sheet for my month's goal is more of a collection of notes and ideas. The daily checks indicate whether I showed up and worked toward the goal. This gives me a lot of leeway between "did the bare minimum" and "overachiever" while focusing on moving forward.

Short-Term (One-Time or Monthly Reoccurring):

Healthcare

File for Unemployment if I Don’t Have Work

Get All Personal Information off of Work Laptop

Get a Better Understanding of Startup Costs

Get Pricing for Known Business Expenses/Fees

Can I Run a Business from Home Here?

Putty the Holes in the Closet

Take the Rest of the Hardware out of the Closet

Pick a Wood for the Closet

Pick a Paint for the Closet

Draw out a Design for the Closet

Hang the Wooden Mini Shelves

Get a Better Temperature Controlled Heater

Write a Post/Script

Check out Stripe for Creating Invoices

Check out Asana for Projects

Check Zoom Login

Check out Typedream for a Landing Page

Check out Instantly for Outreach Campaign

Give the Dog a Bath

Give the Guinea Pig a Bath

Check out Canva for a Logo

Use Logo Sample to Make a Personalized One

Put Up the Cat Tree

Roll Over 401k

Use Restore n Finish on China Cabinet and Desk

Take a Class on Craftsy

My short-term goals are usually easily accomplished and move me in the direction I wish to go, but they often involve things that I am not very interested in or are of a lower priority. This list is ever-changing, so to track how well I'm doing, my sheet counts how much I have done in a month and gives me an average done per day.

Daily Goals:

Beginner Exercise

Check Dog’s Ears

Check Job Board

Clean Something

Clean Guinea Pig Cage

Learn Something

Meditate During the Daytime

Organize Something

Pick up Dirty Laundry

Put Something Away

Read Some

Daily tasks are the actual work. Every tiny thing you do daily is a single step along your path. I struggle to remember everything I wish to do each day: personal hygiene, keeping a clean house, and trying to find or create a job. With this daily checklist, I know exactly what I've forgotten and can choose what to do. My tracking sheet shows me a percentage of completion for daily reoccurring activities.

Not everyone is such a spaz for spreadsheets as I am, but when you have a lot of information, nothing organizes it better than a solid checklist!