{"id":874,"date":"2008-11-26T10:00:47","date_gmt":"2008-11-26T17:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/11\/26\/boost-productivity-with-a-to-dont-list\/"},"modified":"2018-04-03T08:26:02","modified_gmt":"2018-04-03T15:26:02","slug":"boost-productivity-with-a-to-dont-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/11\/26\/boost-productivity-with-a-to-dont-list\/","title":{"rendered":"Boost Productivity With a To-Don’t List"},"content":{"rendered":"

To-do lists are a common productivity tool.\u00c2\u00a0 They help you stay focused and clarify what needs to be done.\u00c2\u00a0 However, just as important as writing a list of things you need to do, you need to write a list of things to stop doing.<\/p>\n

Why Adding More Work Doesn\u2019t Make You Productive<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re really disorganized and lack motivation, then you can spend time trying to increase your total output.\u00c2\u00a0 So if you\u2019re currently outputting 2 hours of productive work each day, it isn\u2019t unreasonable to push that up to 4, 6 or higher.\u00c2\u00a0 But this approach of taking on more work eventually reaches a stopping point.<\/p>\n

When you\u2019re already fairly productive, you can\u2019t simply add on more work.\u00c2\u00a0 Adding more work might make you get more done in the short term, but eventually you burn out.\u00c2\u00a0 Once you reach this point, the only way to get more progress towards your goals is to stop doing work.<\/p>\n

To-Don\u2019t<\/em> Lists<\/h2>\n

I\u2019m not going to make recommendations to cut your email usage, surf the net less or eliminate busy-work.\u00c2\u00a0 Those are all useful suggestions, but they don\u2019t really get at the heart of what makes a to-don\u2019t list powerful.\u00c2\u00a0 You should always try to reduce low-value work, but to-don\u2019t lists help you eliminate something harder to stop.<\/p>\n

The work that is harder to stop is work that has some value, in the short-term, but won\u2019t help you reach your final goal.\u00c2\u00a0 Today, the work might be helpful, but it isn\u2019t going to help you reach your goals months and years down the road.<\/p>\n

A personal example for me was my decision to stop freelance writing.\u00c2\u00a0 Up until August of 2008, I did freelance writing for other websites than my own.\u00c2\u00a0 The pay was good, considering the amount of work I had to put in.\u00c2\u00a0 I also enjoyed the work, and my clients were good.\u00c2\u00a0 Despite this, I forced myself to stop.<\/p>\n

The reasoning was simple: although freelance writing helped me get a higher income now, it wouldn\u2019t help me reach the financial goals I had set for myself.\u00c2\u00a0 Freelance writing could help me reach $20,000 in part-time income, but it wouldn\u2019t be able to grow to reach $200,000.<\/p>\n

Short-Term Benefits, Long-Term Disaster<\/h2>\n

Stopping freelance writing was difficult.\u00c2\u00a0 It meant my income would drop and I was only saving a few hours each month.\u00c2\u00a0 However, I also knew that it couldn\u2019t take me to my goals.\u00c2\u00a0 As a result, my decision meant less money now, but increasing the possibility of more revenues later.<\/p>\n

Most goals have similar to-don\u2019t lists.\u00c2\u00a0 These are things that are helping you reach an intermediate target, but hold you back on reaching bigger results.\u00c2\u00a0 A few examples of work that hold you back include:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Working a 9-5 when you really want a business.<\/li>\n
  • Tasks that can\u2019t scale.\u00c2\u00a0 (Consulting doesn\u2019t scale, creating a product can)<\/li>\n
  • Reading somewhat useful books.<\/li>\n
  • Spending time with friends you don\u2019t share values with.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Don’t Procrastinate Your To-Don’t List<\/h2>\n

    Most people stop working on to-don’t items when they find something better.\u00c2\u00a0 They stop freelancing when they earn enough money from their business.\u00c2\u00a0 They stop spending time with people they don’t care about when they find friends they like. This is backwards. Although it can work, it’s a lot slower than actually following through with your to-don’t list as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

    Sometimes you can’t immediately eliminate something from your life. That’s okay. But the time to remove a to-don’t item is as soon as you can tolerate the temporary dip, not just when you find something better.<\/p>\n

    Get Rid of the Mirages<\/h2>\n

    Look at one of your major goals.\u00c2\u00a0 Then write a list of all the things you\u2019re currently doing that will allow you to reach that target.\u00c2\u00a0 This is your to-do list.\u00c2\u00a0 Now write down all the activities that you\u2019re doing that bring you closer to this goal, but won\u2019t get you to the finish line.\u00c2\u00a0 That\u2019s your to-don\u2019t list.<\/p>\n

    Get rid of the mirages, the bits of work that give you some value, but don\u2019t quench your thirst.\u00c2\u00a0 Because productivity isn\u2019t just knowing what to do, it\u2019s knowing what to stop.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    To-do lists are a common productivity tool.\u00c2\u00a0 They help you stay focused and clarify what needs to be done.\u00c2\u00a0 However, just as important as writing a list of things you need to do, you need to write a list of things to stop doing. Why Adding More Work Doesn\u2019t Make You Productive If you\u2019re really […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[680],"tags":[256,257,38,255,258,253,259,254],"class_list":{"0":"post-874","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-nc-productivity","7":"tag-elimination","8":"tag-mirages","9":"tag-productivity","10":"tag-simplicity","11":"tag-to-do-list","12":"tag-to-dont","13":"tag-to-dont-list","14":"tag-to-stop","15":"entry"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBoost Productivity With a To-Don't List - Scott H Young<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/11\/26\/boost-productivity-with-a-to-dont-list\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Boost Productivity With a To-Don't List - Scott H Young\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"To-do lists are a common productivity tool.\u00c2\u00a0 They help you stay focused and clarify what needs to be done.\u00c2\u00a0 However, just as important as writing a list of things you need to do, you need to write a list of things to stop doing. 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