by Lisa Jordan, @lisajordan

I’m a list maker. I need my to-do list to help me to stay focused on completing my tasks for the day. My list is divided into three categories—home, writing, and work. Each one of those categories offers enough tasks to keep me busy for the whole day. Since I need to divide my daily time into thirds, I have to focus on what’s important for today. 

What are the essential tasks that need to be completed for today?

Because I value relationships…and getting paid for my writing and my job…I want to make sure I’m using my time wisely so I’m keeping my family happy and staying in favor with my bosses (yes, I have two different employers in addition to writing). It’s so easy to allow procrastination and distractions to keep me from getting my jobs done. 

Originally, I planned to write a blog post about using the Rule of 3 to simplify your writing tasks, but as I was doing some research, I came across the 1-3-5 Rule.

While the Rule of 3 is great at determining your priorities for the day, sometimes, if you’re doing a lot of time juggling like me, you have three main priorities for each category in your daily life. I have three top things that need to be done at home. I have three priorities for my writing. I have three priorities for my jobs. So, my top three just became my top nine…or twelve if I separated out both jobs. 

How do I determine which one has the highest priority?

As I read more about the 1-3-5 Rule, I could feel myself breathing a little easier because it made more sense for my very busy life. 

Basically, the 1-3-5 Rule can be broken down into large, medium, and small tasks. 1 big thing, 3 medium things, 5 smaller things.

If you want to implement this idea, do the following:

• Check your calendar for appointments, meetings, or deadlines for that week.  
• Brainstorm everything that needs to be done in your life for that week. 
• Organize your daily tasks by asking yourself the following:
  • What is the most important thing that needs to be done that day? 
  • What are three medium tasks that need to be completed that day? 
  • What are five smaller tasks that need to be completed that day?

By the time you’ve mapped out your week, you’ll have more focus and clarity to get everything done. When it’s time to do the actual work of completing these tasks, begin with the top priority first. It’s probably your most difficult job, but it is also your highest priority so it needs your attention before anything else. You’ll have more energy and better concentration than if you were to push it down your list. Also, once you complete the task and check it off your list, you will have a greater sense of accomplishment. Completing the medium tasks will be easier to do in less time. 

That top priority task may take some time to complete, so work in time segments, making sure to give yourself a brain break. Work for 30-45 minutes, then get up and move for ten minutes. Not only does this prevent your joints from getting stiff, but it also gives your eyes a break from the computer. Once you sit back at your computer, you’ll have more focus. 

Today, my biggest task is to write the next scene in my book. I have a book proposal due to my editor at the end of the month, so I have broken my proposal to-do list down into manageable pieces. For me and the time I have allotted for writing, that’s one scene a day between 1500-2000 words. 

My three medium tasks include writing this blog post, a smaller work project, and running errands to the bank, the post office, and the courthouse.  

My five small tasks include writing a blog post due in a week, editing photos for my blog post, scheduling social media, scheduling a brainstorming session with a friend, and watching a virtual conference video.

By taking the time to brainstorm what needs to be done in your busy life and breaking it down into level of priority, you may find yourself working smarter instead of harder. And isn’t that what we all need to do? Give the 1-3-5 list a try and see if it helps to simplify your writing tasks, offering you more focus and a more productive day.

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A Love Redeemed

Just-for-now could become forever…

They agreed to help each other out.
No one mentioned falling in love.

Back home after losing her job, Isabella Bradley plans to stay only long enough to save her father’s diner, but she can’t do it alone. Her childhood friend Tucker Holland has the perfect solution—he will renovate the diner if she’ll be a nanny for his twins. But as Isabella and Tucker reconnect, their arrangement begins to feel a lot less temporary…

Heart, home, and faith have always been important to Lisa Jordan, so writing stories with those elements come naturally. Represented by Rachelle Gardner of Books & Such Literary Management, Lisa is an award-winning author for Love Inspired, writing contemporary Christian romances that promise hope and happily ever after. Her latest book, A Love Redeemed, releases in September 2020. She is the Operations Manager for Novel.Academy, powered by My Book Therapy. Happily married to her own real-life hero for over thirty years, Lisa and her husband have two grown sons. When she isn’t writing, Lisa enjoys family time, kayaking, good books, and being creative with her friends. Visit her at lisajordanbooks.com.