Article Directory

There are just too many things to do in an average day. It seems like there's always some monster of a project or problem staring at you, and you have no idea how to handle it. The worst days are when the monster gets itself a posse, and they all come after you at once.

But then there's that person we all seem to know who is never ruffled by problems like this. Their life is calm, collected, and they never 'wig-out.' How do they do it? How do they look all those monster-projects in the face and laugh as they sweep them away?

While there are some techniques that work better for some than others there is on technique that works for anyone on any project. This technique is simple. It's simply breaking down your project into more manageable pieces.

When most of us decide to do something it sounds a lot like 'clean the house', or 'increase productivity.' The truth is thinking of a project in such broad terms is overwhelming, stressful, and leaves room for procrastination.

Break down your project into actual tasks. For example when cleaning the house focus on what you need to do exactly. Schedule it out right down to a starting point. Start in the living room. Start with dusting. Then move on to picking things up from the floor, and so on. If you have to get really specific for yourself do it. Schedule dusting the lamp, then the table, and so on

Before you start any project don't just think about what needs to get done. Write it down! You can't think of all the things you need to do as you're doing them. It will all blend right back up together as 'cleaning the house.'

One major plus to breaking down your projects and lists like this is that you can rejoice in every little victory. Now instead of feeling bad because you didn't 'Clean the House' or 'Increase Productivity', you can feel great because you managed to cross off half a dozen little things. Maybe you didn't clean the whole house, but you cleaned the entire living room by breaking the room down into a dozen smaller chunks. Or you reorganized your desk and file cabinet, allowing yourself to find things easier. Also, multitasking sounds great, but often it is more of a distraction than a help. Focus on one project; get it out of the way, then move on to something else.

By breaking down your projects into small, manageable pieces that provide you with a very clear starting point, you increase your chances of getting your projects done. You also boost your moral by accomplishing lots of little things that amount to big things. It's way better than not getting anything done at all because the monster and his posse ate you alive.