To do lists

Today I was going over my TO DO list, which lately has grown into double digit numbers, something I promised myself I would not let happen. However, not only do I have a life to lead, but I have a business to run which doubles everything I have to do.

As I went down my list to dust off those items that have been there for a while I realized that I have violated one of the basic principles of time management. Just listing items to do does not help you get things done. It's the ACTION you have take to accomplish the task that gets the ball rolling.

For example, #5 on my list is to "decide what networking groups to join". Great, can't get more open ended than that. Not to mention that I've allowed myself to skip over that one for quite sometime. Deciding means that I have narrowed my choices and to date, I don't even have a list of choices, I'm no where close to figuring out what to do about networking groups.

To get anywhere close to making a decision there are several steps I have to take first. I have to ferret out groups I am interested in and I need to attend some of their meetings. I need to decide where I want to put my few hours of "free" time, distance I am willing to travel, costs of joining and on and on.

So, I need to move #5 to my goal list and replace it with: Call friends and colleagues and get a list of networking groups they belong to and recommend, get invited to a meeting and go. Those are action items I can do.