If you’re like me you probably have more things on your to-do list than you can possibly accomplish in a week much less in a day. It can be very frustrating to achieve the level of focus necessary to make consistent progress towards a goal or a dream.

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I find that this is something a coach has helped me with a fair bit, over time. However coaching is not always available, so here’s a simple self-coaching tool you can employ for consistently creating focus in your work. It’s from a role model of mine Earl Nightingale and was first attributed to Ivy Lea who was paid $25,000 by Charles Schwab once he tried it out.

This past week I had been bouncing from one thing to the next. There always seemed to be enough to keep me busy without ever getting to some of the important things that are key to the growth of my business and reaching my goals.

It’s not like I wasn’t working on my business, but there are some activities that are more important than others for growth, progress and ultimate success. I like to call them “growth work” or “forward moving work”.

I decided to apply what Earl Nightingale considered one of the most important keys to his amazing success. Making a list!

I know this is something everyone knows and it may even seem boring to hear about it again. Personally, I have all kinds of lists and checklist, but it’s amazing how you can enhance their impact on your accomplishments when used properly.

Here is how it works.

  1. Sit down in the evening with a piece of paper and a pen.
  2. Write down the six most important things you need to do tomorrow.
  3. Order the list in order of importance.
  4. Tomorrow morning when it’s time to work, start doing the first thing on the list until it’s complete, then go down the list until each item is completed.
  5. If you don’t complete this list in a day, those things can wait. Just continue down the list the next day.
  6. Once you’ve finished the list, start a new list for the next day.

Making a list may seem obvious, but you may want to consider this simple process to supercharge your organization, planning and work with laser focus.

[reminder]How do you use lists to move you forward in reaching your plans and goals? What is another tool you recommend for creating focus in your work?[/reminder]