-By Stacy Musunuru

Does it seem like your ‘to do’ list never ends? The list can get long and overwhelming quickly and becomes hard to even know where to start. First, get all the tasks out of your head and write them down on paper by investing in a daily planner. Keeping a planner is one of the best things I started doing while in college. I also get satisfaction by crossing off my tasks as I accomplish them. That is probably the Type A in me!

Next, divide your list into categories, such as work, home and kids. Prioritize your list your most important task to least important for each category. By dividing them up into categories, it helps ‘break up’ the list and keep your thoughts organized. Complete the hardest tasks first thing in the morning. Sometimes making that hard phone call or sending that dreaded email can really weigh on you and cause prolonged stress if you procrastinate. ‘Take your garbage out’ in the morning and you’ll feel a little lighter for the rest of the day or week. 

Next, look at how much time you have each day and what tasks can you accomplish? Don’t set yourself up to complete 10 things on our list, when realistically, you can complete 2 or 3. Select the most important items and plan when you will have time in your day to work on them. Don’t place that added pressure on yourself by trying to accomplish too much.

Piling too much on our plate will only lead to increased distress, or ‘bad’ stress. If distress is not managed, it becomes chronic and can lead to illness and disease. However, we need some level of stress in our lives, or else we would never be trying anything new and exciting. Eustress is our ‘good’ stress and is not detrimental to our health. Eustress would be the start of a race, planning a wedding, starting a new job, etc. 

To help manage distress, schedule time for ‘you’ each day. Exercise is a great stress management technique in addition to deep breathing, visual imagery and/or meditation. Also, make time for things you enjoy. Plan ahead for time to read a few pages in a book each day, listen to and/or play music, or just sit outside and take in some fresh air and sunshine. 

Ultimately, accomplishing your tasks each day comes down to time management. Once you start to manage your time, you start to manage your life. Some time management skills are: 

• Identify your Time Killers: Keep a daily log for 3-7 days and write down how you are using your time every 30 mins. Identify your time killers. How much time are you really spending on the phone, on the internet, watching television? 

• Identify Immediate Goals and Prioritize Them: What needs to get done today? What needs to be completed this week? Prioritize your list from top, medium and low priority.

• Keep a daily planner: Stay organized and keep your thoughts and tasks on paper. 
  Perform an overview of your day each night: Why were you not able to accomplish today? What got in the way? What were some of your time-killers and/or distractions? How will you accomplish these tasks tomorrow?

Coach Stacy Musunuru is a triathlon and strength coach with Lifelong Endurance. She specializes in working with parents, beginners, and over-forty athletes.