{"id":9092,"date":"2023-11-26T20:22:26","date_gmt":"2023-11-26T13:22:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=9092"},"modified":"2023-11-26T20:22:26","modified_gmt":"2023-11-26T13:22:26","slug":"the-ivy-lee-method-can-help-get-your-to-dos-done","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=9092","title":{"rendered":"The Ivy Lee Method Can Help Get Your To-Dos Done"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"drop-cap text-big text-gray\"> <span class=\"drop-cap__first text-dropcap \">A<\/span>nyone who has ever flipped through the 20-plus pages of a menu from The Cheesecake Factory can tell you that sometimes, having more options is <em>not<\/em> always a good thing. Research shows that after a certain point, having too many options <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S1057740814000916\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S1057740814000916\">usually makes people feel less satisfied<\/a> with the one they do eventually pick. It can also make it hard to commit to any one choice, or summon up the energy to make a decision at all. This phenomenon, called \u201cthe paradox of choice\u201d or \u201cchoice overwhelm,\u201d applies to shopping, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/how-deal-relationship-anxiety\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/how-deal-relationship-anxiety\/\">dating<\/a>, and even tackling your to-do list. And when it comes to work, choice overwhelm\u2014particularly when you&#8217;re facing a long list of all equally-urgent-seeming tasks, can leave us stuck doing nothing and then feeling guilty and burned out.<\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<p>[The Ivy Lee method] forces me to identify my top priorities, and think honestly about what I can and can\u2019t do in a day.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>How can we make decisions, stay on track, and do what we need to? Enter a 100-year-old productivity tool called the Ivy Lee method, which can help you beat decision fatigue by streamlining your to-do list and reducing multitasking. It might have been created in the early 1900s, but can be just as useful today to help you focus and do what you really need to.<\/p>\n<div class=\"\">\n<hr\/>\n<div class=\"experts-in-article noskim py-[24px] px-[40px]\">\n<p>Experts In This Article<\/p>\n<ul class=\"!ml-[18px]\">\n<li> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.halfmanagedmind.com\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.halfmanagedmind.com\/\">Charlotte Rooney<\/a>, a leadership and anti-burnout mentor and coach for women leaders at A Half Managed Mind <\/li>\n<li> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jesswass.com\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.jesswass.com\/\">Jess Wass<\/a>, a career coach and consultant who specializes in helping overachievers realign their career with their life <\/li>\n<li> <a href=\"\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" class=\"no-underline citation\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"\"><span>Laura Vanderkam<\/span><sup>1<\/sup><\/a>, Laura Vanderkam is a productivity and time-management expert and the author of several books, including her latest, The New Corner Office. <\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<hr\/><\/div>\n<h2>What is the Ivy Lee method?<\/h2>\n<p>The Ivy Lee method was developed by Ivy Lee, a productivity consultant who was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/ivy-lee-method-productivity-2018-9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/ivy-lee-method-productivity-2018-9\">reportedly hired by Charles M. Schwab<\/a> in 1918 to help improve efficiency at his company, Bethlehem Steel Corporation. Lee came up with this method to help people both plan and do their work.<\/p>\n<p>The method is as follows:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>The night before work, write a list of six (and only six!) tasks for the next day in priority order.<\/li>\n<li>In the morning, start working on your list in order, and give each task your full attention\u2014no multitasking.<\/li>\n<li>Only move onto the next task when you have finished the one before.<\/li>\n<li>At the end of the day, if you have tasks still left, add them to the start of your list for tomorrow, and repeat.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2>How does this technique work?<\/h2>\n<p>The Ivy Lee method is fairly simple, but it\u2019s effective for several reasons. For starters, making a limited list of to-dos forces you to be realistic about what you can accomplish. \u201cPeople will sometimes create to-do lists with 100 items on there, but that&#8217;s not a to-do list, it&#8217;s a wish list,\u201d says <a href=\"https:\/\/lauravanderkam.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/lauravanderkam.com\/\">Laura Vanderkam<\/a>, author of several time management and productivity books, including Tranquility by Tuesday. Overestimating, she explains, just means a longer list and then feeling bad about not completing it.<\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content \" style=\"\" data-module-init=\"related-content\" data-module-immediate=\"\" v-cloak=\"\">\n<div class=\"related-content__wrapper \" v-cloak=\"\" :class=\"{'is-loaded':isLoaded}\">\n<p> <span class=\"inline pr-6 text-seafoam-dark\">Related Stories<\/span> <\/p>\n<p> <related-content class=\"related-content__links\" parent-article-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/ivy-lee-method\/\" current-title=\"How the Ivy Lee Method Can Help You Overcome Decision Fatigue and Get Things Done More Quickly\" current-image=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/GettyImages-Ivy-lee-method-MorsaImages-425x285_418x278_true_70.webp\" v-on:parsely-posts-loaded=\"onPostsLoaded\" start-date=\"2023-05-26\" tag=\"div\" inline-template=\"\" url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/ivy-lee-method\/\" secret=\"w5ztterVB03LGZJLfXS0hf3EvQBuFFIWew9hmVQxthU\" apikey=\"wellandgood.com\" limit=\"3\"> <\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"related-content__card mb-[10px] sm:mb-[20px]\" :class=\"{'related-content__card--full':posts.length === 1}\" v-for=\"(post, key) in posts\"> <a v-on:click.prevent=\"trackLinkGA($event, key)\" :href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/ivy-lee-method\/post.url\" data-url-source=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content__link\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content__card--image bg-tan\" :style=\"{ backgroundImage: 'url(' + post.image_url + ')' }\"> <img :src=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/ivy-lee-method\/post.image_url\" :alt=\"post.title\"\/> <\/div>\n<p> <\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/related-content> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>This process is useful not just for what you put on but for what you leave off. Identifying your priority tasks \u201cwill reduce overwhelm because it shows you how much of what you have been worrying about is noise,\u201d says <a href=\"https:\/\/www.halfmanagedmind.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.halfmanagedmind.com\/\">Charlotte Rooney<\/a>, anti-burnout mentor and coach at A Half Managed Mind.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve personally been using the Ivy Lee method for a couple of years and find the list-making step really difficult. It forces me to identify my top priorities, and think honestly about what I can and can\u2019t do in a day.<\/p>\n<p>By planning ahead, the Ivy Lee method also ensures you start each day with a road map of tasks, rather than ping-ponging from decision to decision in the moment. Our ability to make decisions is like a car\u2019s fuel tank, says career coach and consultant <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jesswass.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.jesswass.com\/\">Jess Wass<\/a>, who specializes in helping people realign their career with their life. \u201cWe start the day with a full tank but as the day goes on with all the decisions we make, our energy levels start to drop. When it drops enough, we&#8217;d have a harder time making decisions and we start to feel overwhelmed.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cIt is a tool to help you achieve your goals, not a standard you have to live up to.&#8221; \u2014Charlotte Rooney, anti-burnout mentor and coach, A Half Managed Mind<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>You can reduce decision fatigue in part through habits\u2014like having a go-to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/jacquelynsmith\/2012\/10\/05\/steve-jobs-always-dressed-exactly-the-same-heres-who-else-does\/#:~:text=Unlike%20most%20corporate%20executives%2C%20who,certainly%20wasn't%20the%20last.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/jacquelynsmith\/2012\/10\/05\/steve-jobs-always-dressed-exactly-the-same-heres-who-else-does\/#:~:text=Unlike%20most%20corporate%20executives%2C%20who,certainly%20wasn't%20the%20last.\">\u201cwork uniform\u201d \u00e0 la Steve Jobs<\/a>, always having the same thing for breakfast, or making an Ivy Lee list the night before. That way when you sit down to work, you haven\u2019t used up any decision-making gas and instead focus more energy on how you are going to do what needs to get done.<\/p>\n<p>Your streamlined Ivy Lee list means you\u2019ll always know what you need to focus on even if you get pulled off track, too. (Because random emails or last-minute requests from your boss will always come up.) \u201cWe have a moment of thinking, <em>What was I supposed to be doing?<\/em> And if you don&#8217;t have a quick answer to that, we start to panic internally,\u201d says Wass. While you might otherwise slip into productive procrastination\u2014reaching for the easiest, but not necessarily most important thing\u2014Ivy Lee means you have a plan and way to bring your attention back.<\/p>\n<p>Planning ahead means you are more likely to make decisions which favor longer-term, often more important goals instead of quick wins, adds Rooney. \u201cFocussing on impact rather than ease of execution changes the order that you tackle problems in. Rather than knocking off the easy things first, the Ivy Lee method tells us to start with what is important and will make the biggest difference.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>How to use the Ivy Lee method to get sh*t done<\/h2>\n<p>While Ivy Lee advocated for six tasks and always working in order, his 1918 workday likely contained fewer meetings and certainly no Zoom calls. Meaning that for a modern workplace\u2014where <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fastcompany.com\/3048815\/how-12-companies-make-meetings-memorable-effective-and-short\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.fastcompany.com\/3048815\/how-12-companies-make-meetings-memorable-effective-and-short\">37 percent of employee time<\/a> is spent in meetings\u2014some tweaks to this method are warranted.<\/p>\n<p>For example, you don\u2019t need to force yourself to list out six tasks. For some people, especially those with meeting-heavy jobs, six tasks might be too many, but you can tweak it to work for modern schedules \u2013 maybe three or four tasks works better for you.<\/p>\n<p>Completing tasks in order might be less feasible for some work schedules, too. \u201cYou might be better served by figuring out when you&#8217;ll do each item on your list based on how much time you have available,\u201d says Vanderkam. This could mean doing lower priority but quicker tasks in between morning meetings and focusing on your longer, more important tasks when you have a bigger break later in the day.<\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t beat yourself up if you haven\u2019t managed to cross all six tasks off your list or weaponize it to make you feel bad about yourself. \u201cIt is a tool to help you achieve your goals, not a standard you have to live up to,\u201d says Rooney. Ivy Lee could trigger perfectionist or overworking behaviors in some people, so don\u2019t be afraid to set a hard boundary around when you are finishing work and make peace with sometimes having tasks left over.<\/p>\n<p>You might feel like you are doing less to start with, but you\u2019re finishing fewer tasks because they are more important, complicated ones. \u201cIf you\u2019ve gotten used to running on adrenaline and dopamine from being very busy, reactive and short-term focussed, this kind of shift can feel uncomfortable at first,\u201d says Rooney.<\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t expect to be perfect at it straight away. \u201cYou\u2019re learning a new system, so you will have to try, test, review, and adjust for a bit,\u201d Rooney explains. She says you might over or underestimate how much you can do or feel stuck wondering how to prioritize tasks, but don\u2019t let that put you off. \u201cTry what feels good enough, and then reflect at the end of the day. Use the information to plan differently the next day and keep tweaking until it works for you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>None of us can ever get everything done every day. But by thinking ahead, Ivy Lee can help us focus on the tasks that really matter. It\u2019s an old method that still works today to simplify the to-do list, reduce our need to make endless decisions, and hopefully, feel a little bit better about the way we work. Treated as a framework that can be tweaked for modern life, choosing to try it could be one decision that helps reduce, rather than add to, your decision fatigue.<\/p>\n<div class=\"block-thin post-citations mt-[40px] mb-[30px]\" data-module-init=\"main-2020\/post-citations\" data-module-immediate=\"true\">\n<hr class=\"!border-seafoam-dark mb-[24px]\"\/>\n<div class=\"post-citations-content flex flex-col gap-[24px]\">\n<p>Well+Good articles reference scientific, reliable, recent, robust studies to back up the information we share. You can trust us along your wellness journey.<\/p>\n<div>\n<ol class=\"!ml-[18px] !mt-0\">\n<li>\n              Chernev, Alexander, et al. \u201cChoice Overload: A Conceptual Review and Meta-Analysis.\u201d <em>Journal of Consumer Psychology<\/em>, vol. 25, no. 2, 2015, pp. 333\u201358, https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.jcps.2014.08.002.            <\/li>\n<\/ol><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<hr class=\"!border-seafoam-dark mt-[24px]\"\/>\n  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1675549\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Anyone who has ever flipped through the 20-plus pages of a menu from The Cheesecake Factory can tell you that sometimes, having more options is not always a good thing. Research shows that after a certain point, having too many options usually makes people feel less satisfied with the one they do eventually pick. It &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":9093,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9092","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9092"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9092\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}