Keep it Simple—Get Things done with the Rule of One

 

 

What made me think that once PEACE BY PIECE was published, my unending to-do list would shrink and I would feel less swamped?

Wrong.

I know I’m not alone in having lots to do.  Developing author pages, sharing guest blogs, scheduling book talks, distributing books to local stores, creating consignment agreements, invoices, and receipts, the looming rewrite deadline for my second novel, CAPE MAYBE—my everyday to-do list still goes on and on.

I’m betting you have loads to juggle on your to do list, too.  

But there’s hope. Keep it simple and tackle your to-do list with the Rule of One.

I learned the Rule of One while cleaning my refrigerator.  No joke. Unlike my mother—who would empty the ENTIRE fridge weekly, and scrub down every shelf—I clean my fridge one shelf at a time. If I take something out and a shelf looks pretty empty, I grab the sponge and clean that shelf. I rarely find the time to attack the whole fridge at once, but it’s usually doable to wipe up just one shelf. Sure, it means the entire fridge is never spic and span all at the same time, but one shelf at a time, the fridge stays pretty clean.

I figure, if it’s good enough for the fridge, it can work for everyday life.

Instead of focusing on my entire to-do list and feeling overwhelmed, I try to pick one thing to focus on, and make progress on that one thing done. It helps if in picking that one thing I consider first things first, asking myself what’s really most important. But even if the best you can do is tackle what you like the most or what looks easiest, give yourself credit. It might be cheating a little on time management, but it’s still following the Rule of One and getting something done.  

So what about you? Will you try to keep it simple and use the Rule of One?