Do the Work: The Post-It Note Method
Earlier this week, I was chatting with Emily and vulnerably shared that I was having a hard time doing the work. (We actually recorded the conversation—you can listen to it here: Being Boss Episode #60: Motivation, Inspiration, Discipline & Action.) I pride myself on having the kind of work ethic and discipline it takes to be a successful creative entrepreneur, but for whatever reason (winter blues?) I’ve been sluggish to get started when it comes to tackling my ever-growing to-do list. Emily and I are business partners and co-hosts, and sometimes I forget that I used to have conversations like this with her all the time – so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise when she gave me a simple piece of advice that helped me snap out of my funk and get back to work.
THE POST-IT NOTE METHOD
Emily loves her tech and she loves her systems—so project management software is pretty much her wet dream. So I was surprised when Emily suggested an old-school method for getting shit done: bust out the pen and a post-it note. My digital to-do list was paralyzing my ability to get anything done, so Emily coached me to simply write three things on a post-it note that I wanted to complete that day.
An old school method for getting shit done: bust out the pen and a post-it note. Click To TweetEmily confessed that she had been using this tactic recently too and that more often than not, she gets way more than three things done—but everything you manage to complete beyond the post-it note is gravy. The post-it note gives you the confidence that you can write that newsletter, design that worksheet, and organize your DropBox folder. That confidence then gives you momentum to keep going and tackle more projects.
If you like learning about productivity and to-do lists, you might also like:
- Listen to the episode where Emily gave me the post-it note advice on Episode #60: Motivation, Inspiration, Discipline, and Action
- We also talked about how to stay motivated in Episode #6: Staying Motivated and Happy
- We chatted how to not be lazy with Tommy Walker on Episode #36: How to Not Be Lazy with Tommy Walker
