For the last few days I’ve been feeling a little frustrated and overwhelmed.  It seemed like I had so much to do and was getting nothing done.

This morning, while avoiding doing anything meaningful once again the idea hit me to make a list.  I am a real go-with-the-flow kind of gal so lists aren’t something I do much of these days.  But when I feel that little nudge from my inner being I listen so I started jotting things down.

Very quickly I had 21 things to do, most of which were small things that could be done in just a few minutes.  And as I read over the list, I realized there were also a few things that I’d really been avoiding doing – and they’d turned into huge monsters in my mind.

Seeing what I had to do in black and white made something shift and almost immediately I was motivated to take care of a couple small things.  Then I did one of the big things I’d been avoiding.  It took less than 15 minutes to complete and once I was done it was like a huge weight had been lifted.  Now I’m almost a third done with the list, and I have a stack by the front door for the “errands” section which I am doing next.

The point is that sometimes getting stuff out of your head and onto paper clears the way for inspired, focused action.  And the act of crossing things off the list is empowering and energizing!

How about you?  Do you find lists helpful when you’re feeling stuck or lack direction? I’d love to hear what gets you moving again.