A list of lists

A list of things we may love about lists:

1. They look so beautiful when we use our best handwriting.
2. Alternating biro colours just adds to the beauty and makes each item easier to read.
3. They give us a feeling of having some order and control over our lives, or at least the next hour/day/week and help to keep overwhelm at bay.
4. They are particularly satisfying to write and read when they relate to our special interests.
5. They take up the slack that our, often, poor memories just can’t handle.
6. A list with a tickbox option is a particular joy.
7. They give us the reason to add to our stationery collection in the form of notebooks, pens, highlighters – the works!
8. They allow us to feel like we’re being proactive.
9. They clear the mind and calm the soul (if we have one…we might want to write a list of pros and cons for that possibility).
10. They make giving and receiving instruction so much more methodical and straightforward.
11. The crinkly sound that a fully listed (both sides) page makes.

 

A list of things we may hate about lists:

1. Having a new list notebook and making a mistake on the very first page – we know immediately that this little book can never be perfect again. Sigh.
2. Forgetting to allow enough space for double figured numbering, so then the alignment of the handwritten list is all off, spoiling the effect.
3. The pressure of the unfinished (unstarted?) list really is a killjoy.
4. The realisation that writing the list was a lot more enjoyable than actually doing the tasks on it.
5. Emptying our essential To Dos into a list and then losing that vital list just when we need it (in the middle of a high stress environment, usually).
6. The danger of the unrealistic To Do list – that can only lead to a feeling of underachievement.
7. Adding things on the bottom of a To Do list as fast as we’re marking them off. There needs to be a rule about lists being ‘read only’ once written!
8. Our partners not respecting The List and the tasks we have, so very helpfully, assigned to them.
9. Choosing a pen that bleeds through the paper.

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