I’m a list maker. Always have been, always will be. Ronnie teases me about the joy it brings me to check off the boxes on my to-do list. I absolutely love it when I get to put that little check mark in that little box next to something that needs to be accomplished.

I looked up some information on to-do lists and found that people perform better and procrastinate less when they write down what they need to do.

I also wondered why it feels so good to check things off my list. I learned that when we complete individual tasks, our brains release dopamine which causes positive feelings such as happiness, pleasure and motivation. So now I’ve decided that dopamine brings LIGHT into my life, and anything that brings light into my life must be a good thing, therefore to-do lists are a good thing and bring LIGHT into my life!

Am I tad bit OCD? Absolutely, but I’ve always strived to make it be in a good way. I learned list making is a common symptom of OCD, and at first that made me a little sad. But then I leaned that making lists helps you discern and progress with a clearer, lighter head. Crossing off the boxes on my to-do list can be a healthy self-protective action, or a healthy “defense” (obsession.) I also learned that obsessional character is not always a bad thing. If it is channeled correctly, it can lead to success as well as solace.

Dr. David Cohen explains how to-do lists help anxiety. They dampen anxiety about the chaos of life, they give us a structure and a plan that we can stick to, and they are proof of what we have achieved that day, week, month or year.

I’m a paper and pen kind of girl. I love a pretty notebook, and a smooth gliding pen! So much so, that I have lots of both! However, I have my own kind of simple planner that I love! My cousin, Ryan, had a special planner made for me out of green ostrich leather. I absolutely love it, and would be lost without it! I use a standard coil bound notebook inside, and a calendar that fits perfectly inside in front of my notebook. I complete it with my favorite gel pen at the moment, made by TUL. If I find a green one that I like, but I want it to have black ink instead of green ink, I just put a black ink re-fill in the green barrel. I love making my own custom pens this way! I’ll buy a pack of colored ink pens with pretty colored barrels, and then change the ink cartridge out for a black gel one.

I’ve tried to use the calendar on my iPhone, but I miss too many things that way. I need to be able to write it down, and cross it off on real paper with a real pen. My calendar is organized by color. I carry 4 different color Sharpie Ultra-Fine Point markers to keep me on track.

Brown is for Ron, Turquoise Green is for general everyday stuff, Purple is for church responsibilities, and Pink is for birthday’s, special occasions, and holidays. When I had kids at home, I had a color for each of them as well.

Now that they are all married with their own little families, I don’t need an individual color for them anymore. I just realized that means, they are fully independent and flying through their own lives of organized chaos! WooHoo!!! I’m grateful they have grown up to be contributing members of society. Sometimes my calendar looks pretty messy if I have to cross things out due to unexpected changes, but I still like my system. It works for me. It’s also a way to journal. I try to be specific on the things I write in it, and I keep them all as reference. I’m surprised how often I look back through them to find out when something happened, or when I need some past information on something I did.

I just ordered my 2024 calendar from “Paper Source”. It’s a little smaller this year than it has been in years past. I’m hopeful I’ll be able to make this smaller size work. It also fits better in my planner. I can hardly wait to get my pink pen out and get all the important dates written in!

Organized chaos is how I live my life. By keeping a to-do list, I feel a little more in control of the chaos, and I’m loving the dopamine rush each time I check off those little boxes. So however you keep yourself organized, I hope it brings LIGHT into your life, and a smile on your face as you check off those little boxes of accomplishments.

Have a great week, and enjoy the lovely fall weather as you work on those to-do lists!

Love Ya, Les :)

Life