How to Prioritize a Never-Ending To-Do List

That to-do list can feel never-ending. Especially this time of year with the holiday season coming up fast.

Added to your normal day-to-day responsibilities, you’ve got holiday planning, year-end wrap-ups, and planning for 2023.

You might be left wondering, “How do I prioritize and actually get stuff done when I have so much on my plate?”

As a bit of an overachiever (and recovering perfectionist), I love a good list. I even gave my wedding party typed instructions on my wedding day. I maintain this helped the day run smoothly, but not everyone appreciated my organization.

But as much as my to-do list keeps me focused and helps me achieve my goals faster…

…sometimes that to-do list can become a monster.

Here’s a secret that’s taken me a lot of time (and frustration) to learn: As a high-achieving professional with big career goals (and who still wants to make time for family game nights, soccer practices, and the occasional trip to the gym), that to-do list is never going to be totally checked off.

And that’s okay. If you want to achieve your goals faster, the solution isn’t to be working 24/7 trying to squeeze it all in.

We know from the research that working all the time actually makes us less productive.

And making time for a life outside of work like hobbies, time with family and friends, and regular sleep not only boosts your mental efficiency but might also help you live longer.

The key to feeling in control of your to-do list, without rushing all day and feeling constantly behind, is becoming an expert at prioritizing.

3 Steps You Can Use Every Day to Prioritize Your To-Do List

Step 1: Decide what’s truly urgent.

One of my first summer jobs in university was working in a warehouse at a metals plant. Workers from around the plant would put in orders for parts they needed. I’d find the part in the warehouse and have it ready when they came by the shop later in the day.

Twenty years later, I still remember the one colleague who marked every single order he submitted as “urgent." One tiny screw or bolt. Urgent. I’d rush to get it for him, and he’d rush over from wherever he was working to pick it up. And then repeat the whole process an hour later.

I’m willing to bet since he did this at least five times a day the whole four months I was working there that not all those orders were truly urgent.

It would have been much more efficient to put in one order a day rather than interrupting what he was doing a million times.

And we all fall into that productivity trap. You look at that massive to-do list and it all feels urgent right? It all feels like it has to get done right now. But that’s not true.

The first step in prioritizing that monstrous to-do list is getting crystal clear on what’s really urgent.

Look at that to-do list and ask yourself: Is anything really urgent? If the answer is yes, then it probably needs to go on today’s priority list.

Step 2: Eliminate the "shoulds"

Get that to-do list out again and ask yourself how many things are only on there because you feel like you “should” be doing them.

When I’m overwhelmed, stretched thin, and feeling behind, I tend to have a lot of these “shoulds” on my list.

The things that are on our to-do list because that inner perfectionist or inner people pleaser makes us feel like we “should” be doing them.

For me, “the shoulds” include things like obsessing over the perfect alignment on my blog, making plant-based meals that are creative and my kids will actually eat, or giving an extra presentation that I really don’t have time for but I felt guilty saying no to.

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The end result? A lot of busy work on that to-do list that’s draining your time, energy, and focus.

Cross off anything on your to-do list that’s only there because you feel like you should be doing it.

Step 3: Identify which tasks move the needle the most toward your current goal.

These are the tasks that are the highest priority on your to-do list—the ones that actually take you closer to your goals.

When it comes to that big project you have on the go at work, ask yourself: Which tasks on that list are going to get you to that goal the fastest?

If you’re not sure which tasks will move you closest to your goals, they’re probably the ones that feel a bit scary. The ones where you aren’t quite sure where to start.

Our brains like to stay comfortable. Find the tasks on your list that make your brain try and resist. The ones that feel a bit daunting. Those are probably the key tasks to make priorities.

A to-do list is great until it becomes an overwhelming monster. The keys to prioritizing that never-ending to-do list? Decide what’s truly urgent. Eliminate the shoulds. And prioritize productive work over busy work. With these tools, you’ll feel confident tackling that to-do list every day.