A To-Do List on a Spreadsheet

My friends asked me to share my to-do list spreadsheet, so here it is!

Last year I used GTD (Getting Things Done) to create a spreadsheet. My spreadsheet was mixed in with a lot of other pages, and eventually I had too many, and got confused.

For example, I had a page in that spreadsheet for keeping track of all site updates since I have a lot of WordPress blogs, and plugins to keep updated on them. I also had a page for keeping track of how all my website pages link together.

And then there were the financial pages!

I needed clarity, and decided to separate some of these topics into their own spreadsheets. Now I have a separate spreadsheet for business expenses, and one for link tracking. I also have separate spreadsheets for my Literature For Kids site and for my Lifesong Press publishing venture.

This year I read another time management book, Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time – and that book inspired this spreadsheet, which is toned down a bit and easier for me to manage. I may re-read Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity and incorporate more of those ideas into this system, but for now, this is what I’m using successfully to organize my time and to motivate me to get things done. By the way, the frog-eating reference is about doing the least-loved task first thing in the morning, to get it out of the way. This really is a great time-management book used by millions. As a vegetarian, I’m not fond of the title but am happy with the suggestions in the book!

Here it is:

 
This spreadsheet was created with Microsoft Home and Office 2010 and saved as an .xls file. If you have trouble opening it, let me know in comments what spreadsheet software you’re using, and I’ll try to create a copy that will work for you.

You might notice that the page names (see the bottom line in the spreadsheet) are abbreviated. This is space-saving. The abbreviations are explained in the notes on the ML page (ML = Master List).

The necessary pages are Daily, Weekly, Monthly, and Master List. I’ve also added a few other pages I use: TBR for keeping track of books I want to read, WIP for keeping track of my works in progress (writing, revising), and Notes, for keeping notes on non-fiction books I’m reading. A sample is on the page – the book I’m reading now which is big and thick and full of great ideas: 1001 Ways to Market Your Books. Highly recommended – especially for indie authors or small press publishers, or any author who wants to help market their own book.