Three priorities a day: the simplest planning system that sticks
Long to-do lists create guilt, not progress. Choosing three things a day is easier to keep and easier to finish.
· 3 min read
A to-do list with 27 items is not a plan. It is an inbox. The plan is the few things that must happen today.
How it works
- Each evening, or first thing in the morning, choose three priorities for the day.
- At least one should move a bigger goal forward, not just answer someone else's request.
- Everything else stays in an inbox list. You look at it when choosing tomorrow's three.
Why three
Three is small enough to finish on a busy day and big enough to make real progress across a week: fifteen meaningful things from Sunday to Thursday.
Close the week
On Thursday, spend five minutes looking back: what got done, what moved, what to drop. Then choose Sunday's three.