Ideas for productivity lists to increase efficiency

A to do list is probably what most people think of when they think of lists. If you want to get more productive then there’s a range of lists you can make to help keep things organised and achieve tasks that need doing.

The point of productivity is to achieve things more efficiently. You want to free up time when modern life is so busy. But still get everything done in the time you have. So writing these productivity lists mean you’ll have them to hand to guide you when you’re doing the task.

Hopefully it them means you’ll be faster at completing them rather than having to stop and think after each task they need to do. You won’t need to work out the next task, instead it’s already on the list and can just be worked on straight away.

I’m focusing here on home life rather than work. Personal life is often where we focus less and just let things relax compared with work where we’re paid to be efficient. At home you want to be able to relax and fit things in. Hopefully some of these lists will help reduce time you have to spend on some of these tasks year to year, or month to month.

Ideas for productivity lists

Make a weekly to do list

Make a monthly to do list

Make a cleaning rota list – for all the family

Write shopping lists (and take them with you)

Write a list of foods you have at home (in fridge, cupboards and freezer), and check this before shopping. Removing items as you use them.

Write a meal plan – for the week or longer

List all the existing leftover meals in your freezer with dates to eat them by

Write a list of all the foods your family do or don’t like to enable you to meal plan

Make a list of all the shops you like to buy specific items from, so you immediately know which shop to go to for which item (useful as us as my husband is particularly fussy about certain foods he likes/dislikes from different places and I can never keep track)

Keep a list of places to check for shopping discounts (apps, websites, store magazines) to get the best value for your shopping.

List your household chores that need completing

List morning habits you want to achieve daily.

List tasks you need to do in the evenings to prep for the next day

Make a packing list for different holiday types to you go on – you can just use this each time rather than re-doing it every time you need to pack.

Have a list of family birthdays

Write a gift idea list each year – categorise in different ways, e.g the different people you need to buy for, when you need to buy them by, or by gift types.
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List places at home you need to declutter

List items you need to declutter

List items you’ve decluttered and want to sell.

List items you own (e.g books, DVDs, jigsaws) to avoid buying duplicates.

List ways you can save time each day.

Make a list of ways to save money.

Make a list of money making ideas

Make a list of ingoings and outgoings to understand your budget.

List your bad habits you want to stop.

List any valuable items that need to be included separately in household/contents insurance.

Make a list of your bank accounts and their interest maturity dates so you know when to switch.

Make a (protected) list of your passwords

What other lists help you become more productive?