Do you make lists?
I love lists. I love making lists. And reading lists. How did we find lists before the Internet?
Lists of anything:
Reading lists. My To Read list is never ending. Possibly this is because I don’t really write anything down, it’s more a mental note (“must check that out sometime”). My Read List on the other hand is closely tracked, and I blog it every year. It’s my favourite blog post to write, even. I’ve actually tracked the books I’ve read ever since I was a child. It’s a shame I haven’t preserved those lists. It would be quite interesting to see what I thought of To Kill A Mockingbird the first time I read it, for instance.
When preparing for a trip the first thing I do is write a list. A list of what I’m going to pack. I don’t know why I do it, really, given that I pack very light (carry on only), and I tend to bring the same things every time. Still, it’s part of the ritual.
Shopping lists? Every weekend I write one. This list tends to be very haphazard as I don’t use any particular system or app. I get a scrap of paper and a pen and just write down what I think the household needs. Sometimes I check the pantry cupboard. I might consult a recipe, if I’m planning to cook something particular. But it’s very likely that we will a) forget to buy something on the list, and b) buy something not on the list. And on the weekends when I can’t be bothered to write a list, we do still end up with the majority of the supplies we need.
My To Do list? My To Do list is another thing again. I have tried different apps and systems: Clear, Workflowy, GTD…
Let me just say, I am very conflicted when it comes to the To Do list. I think it’s absolutely necessary, given the number of things I have on the go at any one time, and that I need to keep track of. I have a few problems with my To Do list, however:
- I have a tendency to procrastinate, and sometimes making a list is a perfect way to put off the actual doing.
- I love ornate To Do systems but I get caught up in doing the system, rather than doing the things in the system.
- I write lists then chuck them awaynever look at them again and forget all about the actual doing. It’s like the list substitutes for the doing. This happens to me more often than I care to admit.
And notice how this last bit had to become a list? This whole post was a list*.
Sheesh.
I rest my case.
*and yes, I have a category on this blog: “lists”.