I'm obsessed with life hacks. If there's a way to do something easier and faster I'll find it.

Not because I'm lazy, but because I put an extremely high value on my time and mind space.

Now I've probably got dozens of life hacks and I may share more in time, but there is one that really was a game changer for me.

For several reasons.

1. It helps me transition from 'work' to 'home' mode to be more present with my family [tough when you work from home]
2. It saves me a boatload of my two favorite things every morning [time and mind space]
3. It helps me fall asleep faster and stay asleep

Here it is. It's a list.

Now, I know that sounds simplistic, but hear me out.

This isn't just another "to-do" list. It's more what I call a "forever" list.

First you sit down and think about your goals. You can do this with anything but let's take your job for example. What do you want to accomplish in the next 90 days? Write that down. Be as specific as possible.

Next, write down all the different things you could do to hit that goal. Write as many things as you can think of - no judgement.

Next, create four categories.

I like to call this a "priority quadrant" (although I'm certain there's probably a proven method similar to this with a formal name). I'm not claiming this is original, it's just my version of pieces I've learned from different sources and how it works for me.

Anyway, the priority quadrant:

1. High Priority/High Effort
2. High Priority/Low Effort
3. Med Priority/High Effort
4. Med Priority/Low Effort

Don't worry about low priorities for this list. If they're low, they can go on your next 90-day list or they may turn out to be moot.

Now take all the things you wrote down and separate them into these categories. Depending on how many items you have in each category, you could also take the time to prioritize those by either most urgent or lowest hanging fruit.

Now it's time to create "the forever list."

I like to use Evernote because I can update it across multiple devices.

I start with a day and a date. I like to do it on Monday. I select things from my priority quadrant to focus on throughout the week. I always put a few low effort items on it because completing anything is better than completing nothing.

So now you have this running forever list of to-do items. But there's a method to the madness.

Here's where it gets really helpful.

At the end of each day, before you do anything else, go to your list. Make notes on your progress, where you left off, what the next steps are, what you completed, what you need to carry over to the next day and so on.

Here's why this was a game changer for me.

Once I check my list at the end of the day, I can effectively shut down and transition to family mode. I'm not worrying or thinking about anything I might be forgetting, because it all lives on the forever list.

At night, my mind isn't racing with things I need to do because I already noted it on my handy dandy list.

In the morning, I don't waste half an hour trying to remember where I left off or what to work on first—because why?

It's on my "forever list."

I do this Monday through Friday. Then on Friday, I do an assessment.

Did I do everything within my power to make strides this week? Was this a 110% week or more of an 85%?

We all have times when we could have done a better job. The important thing is to acknowledge it, give yourself some grace and vow to rest up and kick ass on Monday. This keeps you out of the rut.

If you're like me, you've likely put in more than enough 150% days to make up for the less than stellar ones.

Once you've evaluated your week, create a fresh list for the following week. Move over what needs to be moved into a nice clean list to hit the ground running Monday morning.

In 30 days, evaluate your goals. What have you achieved? What have you tabled for later? What have you trashed? Do it again 30 days later. After 90 days, set aside time to go back to the beginning. Review your priority quadrant.

You might be amazed at how much you've accomplished, humbled by how much you've learned, or inspired by new 90-day goals.

Odds are, you're a little bit of all of it.

If you feel like you've been pushing a boulder up a mountain and are nowhere near the tree line, this priority quadrant is your chance to look back to where you started and see a documented journey of just how far you've come.

Katrina "I like lists" Turner

P.S. If you really want some killer life hacks, check out this guy ("Don't Tuck" was another game changer for me).
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