A New To-Do List

A New To-Do List

What if your “To-Do” List looked something like this?


1. Give/Receive 5 hugs
2. Smile at a stranger
3. Tell a friend thank you for simply being a positive presence in your life
4. Share one home-cooked meal with a close friend or family member
5. Eat 4-5 servings of vegetables
6. Write down three things in a gratitude journal
7. Spend 5 minutes in silent reflection
8. Read two pages of a spiritual text


While our Standard “To-Do” lists will certainly include practical objectives like buy groceries, wake up at 8 o’clock to finish a term paper, send the confirmation email/memo for the meeting at the end of the week, take out the recycling and trash- why can’t our lists also include a few things from the alternative list above?


Understandably, we cannot just add things to the Standard “To-Do” List and hope to feel completely nourished without the singe of burnout at the end of the day, so what on the Standard “To-Do” could you possible replace? remove? modify?- making space for something, perhaps, a little more nourishing? What if the 8 things on your list were non-negotiable, like drinking water, putting on your clothes for the day, sleeping? What if you had a calendar on your fridge where you could check off such things at the end of the day, reflecting on how you felt as you completed things on your Nourishing “To-Do” List.


We understand that this is a somewhat artificial construct/simulated exercise, but allowing yourself to see “sharing your love with others through the gift of five hugs” on the same level as “drinking and eating to live” can be a profound experience, one that may change how you choose to spend your time, how you connect with others, and, ultimately, how many things you actually get done.