So Much to Do, So Little Time

I’m convinced I have attention deficit disorder. It’s Wednesday morning. I’ve just bolted down a cup of coffee; set up my office in bed; updated my endless list of things to do; checked the headlines in The Huffington Post, which reminded me to read a little more of The Huffington Post’s Complete Guide To Blogging; stopped reading to check my e-mail; noticed that one e-mail included an article on 50 ways to promote your book, which I needed to forward to my writing class; and finally realized I had not finished anything except the coffee. At this point, I checked the time and jumped out of bed because my workout partner was waiting for me.

What’s wrong with this picture?

If I look back I may find I have hit upon this topic before because I frequently feel overwhelmed by the “must-do” tasks on my list. Here’s today’s list:

• Pick up prescription; fill new prescription.
• Grocery shop (at the very least get milk, half & half, and something for the party tonight).
• Pick up slacks at the dressmaker.
• Finish bookmarks, have them printed, laminated, and cut (in time, for tonight’s class)
• Work on D_____’s book.
• Call accountant about income tax return.
• Fill out papers for lawsuit.
• Confirm haircut appointment or Thursday.
• Bank (deposit).
• Fill out personal property tax form.
• Research publishers for F_____.
• Read K_____’s first chapter.
• Check to see if Amazon fixed my list of published books.
• Print out workbook for “Your Money or Your Life” class.
• Do first assignment.
• Answer e-mails; clean out e-mail in-box.
• Record How to Write a Nonfiction Book webinar.

OK, these things don’t all have to be done today, but they do have to be done sometime in the near future. And it feels impossible. Thus, I flit from one task to another and stop in the middle to blog about it and take a photo of the office on my bed. When I mentioned this to my daughter, she observed that I am the only one she knows who can accomplish nothing and write a blog about accomplishing nothing (illustrated, no less).

This whole subject deserves further consideration. More to come … the next time I’m feeling overwhelmed.