We run most of our lives using to-do lists. The first mid-year evaluation I received had the words “Needs to get more organized - should develop the habit of using to-do lists' (Thank you, Prithvi!)' I started reluctantly but quickly realized they were invaluable, and then started using them for personal tasks and objectives as well.

The point behind a to-do list is not that everything in it gets done - they very rarely do. A to-do list merely allows you to become organized in thinking through everything you need to do at one go, allocating time and effort and deciding priorities after seeing all your tasks in one place. Pending items on a to-do list get carried forward, of course and eventually get done.

Many of us work on multiple to-do lists in parallel, which mirror the different planning horizons we work on simultaneously. For instance, I typically have a daily list, a weekly or a fortnightly list and a less-granular-more-hazy one for the month. I see a quarterly or a monthly plan as nothing more than a to-do list for the month. These lists dovetail into one other – a key initiative on your annual plan (annual to-do list) should ideally result in broken down work-streams in your quarterly / monthly lists, and into specific tasks on one of your daily lists. The review, re-plan and update process is based on the horizon – I look at my daily list several times during the day, but review my monthly plan roughly once every week (typically at the start / end of the week).

Now, the same concept can be applied to your lifetime. For years, I have had a simple Excel spreadsheet where I have listed down all the things I want to do in my life. This includes places to travel to, languages to learn, books to read, hobbies to develop and pursue, initiatives I want to take, habits I want to develop / get rid off and so on. Mind Matters, for instance, first appeared on my lifetime list about 4 years before it was actually created, under the more hazy guise of “Want to start and run a business successfully by myself'.

Just as with other to-do lists, everything you put in it may not get done – and unfortunately, you may not be able to carry forward undone items into your next life, or into the afterlife. However, the value of creating a lifetime to-do list remains the same – just by creating one you get to look at all your wishes at one go, and thereby increase the chance that they may get done. Your review frequency could be once a year and your lifetime goals can neatly dovetail into your New Year Resolutions.