If you are a mommy you cannot do without a To Do List. It is a tool that you can use effectively or badly. It is part of what I like to call Mommy Time Management. Without some kind of Mommy Time Management nothing gets done, nobody gets fed, nobody gets dropped to school and you are up late every night catching up on all those things you did not get done during the day.
To use it well make sure that you write down all of the tasks that you need to complete over the course of the day. Make sure you include both large and small tasks and chores. Don't overlook a task because it too monument us. You can always break it down into more manageable parts later.
Break the large items down into smaller chunks to make them more manageable for your needs. Break down the larger projects into smaller chunks to make the prospect of doing them more manageable.
A rule of thumb is to break down anything that takes longer than two hours to complete.
Once you have everything down on that list don't forget to prioritize it from numbers 1 to 20. Make sure that everything marked a 1 is really very important.
The length of the list can be a matter of personal preference. For some people the shorter lists work better for motivation. For others a running list is all that needs to be completed so that their thoughts and needs can be completed.
One thing is for certain. You will get a great sense o accomplishment from crossing each thing off of your list as you do it.
Another thing to keep in mind is that these lists cannot often be set in stone. Sometimes it is necessary to change the priority of a task at the last minute. That is just life.
It is very par for the course for most people to underestimate the amount of time that it takes to complete a task. The deadline approaches and it becomes necessary to make some tasks a lower priority. That one hour trip to the grocery store always turns out tube three hours after all.
In essence your action plan is to do track all of the individual actions that need to be completed and then scratch them off one by one as they are done
You do not have use an action plan for simple things like opening your mail or taking bathroom breaks. However you should have one for all important tasks. This will help you stay as organized as possible.
Your action plan should be as organized as possible especially if it one associated with your office. This is because someone should be able to fill in for you in case one of your kids is sick and you have to stay home. Leaving clear instructions is paramount in this case.