Do you want to know the most productive to do list template that you can have for your work day/ school day (backed by research)?

If so, read on to know what the best to do list is and why.

Now, if you want the short answer, here it is:

Post-it notes

All you need to do is write your schedule on their in time increments, follow it consistently and you are good to go.

Now I know you want the long answer, so let’s get to it.

1. It’s Simple

It really is when you try it.

Have you ever heard of the phrase “Keep it simple stupid?”

Well, if you have, Post-It notes fit the bill.

All you need to do is write down everything that you need to do for the day on a Post-It notes in time increments.

Specifically, these time increments should be 90 minutes long with 20-30 minute breaks in between so you can perform at your best.

Let me show you an example of what this looks like:

Let’s say you get at your desk at 6:30 am in the morning ready to work.

The night before, your schedule looks like this (I’ll make up some tasks here):

6:30 – 8 = Work on highlights report sections 1 through 3

8:30 – 10 = Prepare for presentation to FOX Executive

10:30 – 12 = Make calls to teams about player injuries

12 – 1 = Lunch

1 – 2:30 = Exchange notes with reporters about games

3 – 4:30 = Work on highlights report sections 4 through 6

5 – 6:30 = Meet with supervisor to discuss highlights report

7:30 – 8 = Respond to emails; draft questions for players

You’ll stick this on a Post-It note, keep it on your wallet and refer to it as the day goes on.

That’s it.

No need for big binders or an agenda you might lose.

But then you ask “But what if I lose my Post-It Notes and what if I need to write more stuff? There’s not enough space!”

Here’s the thing:

Discipline is the key to your success.

Read that again so you don’t lose sight of it.

That being said, if you make sure to attach it to your wallet every time you write it (or somewhere you find safer than a wallet) and look at it to make sure you are on track with your day after a work session is over, this won’t be an issue.

Guaranteed.

It’s not like some creep is going to come up and steal it.

Now here’s a problem that Post-It notes can solve for you that agendas can’t and can save you considerable money and time now and into the future.

2. You Will Eliminate Unnecessary Headaches From Your Day (and tomorrow)

In doing research for this post, I came across an interesting testimonial from a prominent executive who testified about what happened when he spilled his beer on his notepad.

Not only was his to do list ruined, but every page on his notepad got ruined as well!

What does this mean?

It means he couldn’t plan the rest of his days because he couldn’t write on the pages!

Luckily, he came across Post-It notes and he realized that if he spilled a drink on a Post-It note, it would just wipe out his plan for the day and that’s it without having to go to the store to buy another notepad and taking time away from an already busy day.

Heck, he could even write his agenda again for the day on a new Post-it note and it’d be like nothing happened!

The thing here is that Post-it notes can save you time from having to go to the store, buying another binder and losing time out of your day that could be devoted to completing what you need to do, especially with a short deadline.

On top of that, a binder can’t be put in your pocket safe from being left behind, whereas a Post-it note can.

Just imagine the pain and the agony that will happen if you leave your planner behind when you need it the most and you can’t go through your day without it.

And just imagine a situation where you place your drink on your desk (even water) and you spill it on your desk and, well, your schedule for the day (and perhaps the rest of your week) goes away with it.

Yucky feeling, right?

On the note of scheduling, your Post-it note should have the schedule for the day with what you need to do in the future written with deadlines on the top (for minor tasks like completing an assignment) so you can reinforce it every day.

With the exception of a long term plan document that you type up or write for yourself that lists your goals and an outline for achieving those goals, every deadline should be written on your post-it note or you’ll lose it.

Do you understand?

With discipline, check the Post-it note daily at a specific time and see what you need to accomplish on XYZ date so you can plan the specifics of accomplishing that task for the next day.

To demonstrate this, let’s say that you have a task to do tomorrow that’s about delivering a package to a vendor.

You would go to your Post-it note and write down “10/5: Deliver package to vendor.”

When your day ends and you need to write the schedule for the next day, you’ll list the specific time intervals when you need to deliver the package along with specific tasks like this:

6:30 – 8 = Drive to vendor in Stuart, Florida

8 – 9 = Deliver package and sell on new products

9 – 10:30 = Drive back to Miami

And you’ll schedule the rest of the day with the specific tasks you need to do along with the time intervals in between.

And honestly, that’s how you write the schedule to maximize your day.

If you are still on the fence about this and you are asking whether or not sticky notes work, I invite you to read another testimonial regarding sticky notes here.

The way he does it is different than how I use sticky notes, but the idea is the same.

The task is staring down at you and you need to get it done off of your list. With a planner, you apparently don’t have that same self-accountability.

In short, the post-it note is with you all the time and you are forced to see it, versus a planner where you typically close it and then you never see it and you don’t grab it and yada yada yada.

Now, I’ve never used a planner in my adult life and I have always used Post-it notes to help me stay on track and remind me of what I need to do throughout the day in a simple way. I can tell you from experience:

Post-it notes work.

Now like I’ve said, the post-it note won’t work if you are not disciplined to use it correctly.

You must look at it every time you start a new task and you must look at the dates when you have something that needs to be accomplished.

The post-it note won’t do the work for you.

It’s simply a guide to not have to memorize everything.

Now you must also write everything you need to do the next day when you finish your day so you don’t forget to do it, you can stay consistent and you can hit the ground running from the moment you start the next day.

Also, your Post-it notes should have a light background to improve the schedule’s readability.

Research shows that you are 26% less likely to comprehend the text you wrote if you use light text on a dark background.

You can see some of the details of this research here.

Does this sound good to you?

If so, then I encourage you to not procrastinate on this and start doing this today.

It’s really effective and if you are disciplined and do this on a day in day out basis, it will work wonders for you and save time during the day.

If you want to take action right now, I recommend buying your first set of post-it notes here from Amazon immediately.

Get it out of the way while you can.

Note: I am an affiliate for Amazon and I will receive a commission from your purchase of post-it notes from the link above, but the price you pay won’t change.

I hope this post was helpful for you and that you got a lot out of it and it makes your daily life more productive (I guarantee it will or I’ll refund your purchase ;)).

If you got a lot out of this post and you want more content that’ll make you insanely productive and help you achieve your fullest potential so you can take over your own world, definitely subscribe to Join the Island, the world’s greatest blog, with your email below and you’ll get all of the fixins’ for your empire!

Go get’em like the superstar that you are!

Until next time,

This is Evan signing off.

PS: Comment below with what you got out of the post. It’d be great to know how this post improved your life in some way.

Evan Cruz

+ posts

Evan Cruz is the founder of Join the Island, the website committed to helping young adults become massively productive and reach their full potential.

He has been featured on Vox, OnlineU, and UpJourney. He has also a cited human relations expert and college expert.

He graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering.

Read more about Evan and Join the Island here.

Subscribe to the Islander Newsletter