'Nightly Lists' Notebook

A lot of people love making ‘To-Do Lists’. It’s important to. If you don’t, you might forget what you need to have done that day. Many people make them in the morning, just before they start their day. However, I’m one of those people who started doing it at night. Ever since I made the switch, my anxiety level has plummeted. Instead of worrying about what I have to do tomorrow, or worrying about what I’m going to put on the next day’s list, it’s all done, right before sleepy time. 

Allowing your anxieties to be jotted down just before bed lifts them, or at least parts of them, from worry. Allowing your anxieties to be jotted down before you close your eyes to sleep releases much of the worry, because you know what you have to do the next day and you no longer have to worry about forgetting what you have to do because it’s right there, on your list. Also, doing that list before you go to bed, releases the anxiety because you know it’s there. It’ll help you sleep, and help you get better sleep.

There’s another list, however, that I feel is important to do, too. With the ‘To-Do’ on the right side, along with its date… the list ‘What I’ve Accomplished Today’ must go on the lefthand side. Add its date, just below the title. Whatever you cross off the next day from your ‘To-Do List’ goes on here.

And, here’s the biggest reason why this lefthanded one is so important: you’re bound to do a lot more in a day than you’ve set out to do. 

Ticking off tasks on your ‘To-Do List’, and adding them to ‘What I’ve Accomplished Today’ is a great way to keep track of whether you’ve done those things or not. However, also adding whatever else you’ve done that day to said bullet points will expand it to everything and anything you’ve done. These added things will probably open your eyes to just how much you’ve done, and it’ll help you feel much, much more accomplished than you would have been just ticking off to-do’s. 

It’s not only an excellent way to keep track of your days, but it’s also a way to alleviate anxiety. Seeing all of the things you’ve completed by night time on one side of the page, and your ticked of to-do’s on the other is an excellent reminder that, no matter how many hours have passed, you’ve done more than you thought you would. Many days won’t be like this, but, chances are, most of them will be.

The more you’ve accomplished, the more at peace with yourself you’ll be. It’s a natural human trait for us to believe that we’re not doing enough, which is why both lists are so important. They prove that you do more in a day than you thought you’d do, and more in a day than you’d set out to. The latter is most important because it’ll help prove to you just how much you do, especially when you don’t realize or haven’t realized it.

Making this a part of your nightly routine, if done religiously, will open your eyes to how your days go, and help alleviate stressors so you can get better sleep. Who doesn’t love a little shut eye, especially when you’re able to get your brain to stop racing before it stops? So many of us people out here in the world have racing thoughts before bed, and a lot of ‘what-ifs’ pop up in our minds — what-ifs that could be lifted if we just write them down, especially because many of those are things we have to do the next day.

Keeping both lists as reminders in ever growing notebooks will help sleep to come more easily. If we write about it, it’ll have less control over us, and it’ll help the what-ifs to slow down so our minds aren’t buzzing when we’re trying to sleep.

Don’t forget to find a journal that will make a good home for these daily lists. If you find one that fits your preferences and personality, it’ll help make taking care of yourself and your psyche less of a chore. Don’t forget a cute pen!