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Success Advice

Why a Don’t Do List Is More Important Than a To Do List

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While a to do list is a crucial part to a successful day, building a don’t do list is likely to have much longer and further reaching benefits to your success. Where to do lists are all about the tactical things you need to work through in a given day or for a project, a don’t do list is all about the strategic things you’re going to cut out of your life.

With those things out of your life you’ve got room to get the most important tasks of the day done. Once we are specific about calling out the things we’re not going to do in a day, it gets much harder for the urgent but not important tasks to consume huge swaths of our day.

A don’t do list helps ensure that we have a default no to so many commitments and thus the margin we need for our important tasks.

If you want to be more successful by building a don’t do list, here are 3 questions to ask yourself:

1. What saps your energy for the day?

The first place to start as we build out a don’t do list is to figure out what saps your energy in the day. If checking your email kills your productivity for the rest of the day then add no email before noon to your don’t do list.

If morning meetings, or writing, or phone calls regularly derail your work on the most important projects in your life, then cut them out. Maybe that means you don’t do them in the morning or perhaps you only do calls on Tuesday’s.

If you can cut those energy draining tasks out of your most productive parts of the day you’re now free to get your 3 most important tasks done without interruption. Then when your energy is lower you can do the tasks that are troublesome anyway and know you got your most important tasks of the day done.

“Without passion, you don’t have anything, without energy you have nothing.” – Donald Trump

2. Which projects sound interesting, but are really just procrastination techniques?

Many of us have great ideas regularly. Ideas we’d love to pursue and would be a great success. The problem is that these ideas regularly come up in the midst of current projects right at the point where we’re in the messy middle grinding out the hard work to complete a project.

You’re writing a book and one of the research pieces gives you a bunch of ideas about other things you could write that aren’t about the book you should be working on. When these new ideas come up, write them on your don’t do list.

You’re actively deciding that it’s good enough idea to write down, but now is not the time to waste energy on it. Once you’re done with your current, more important project push, come back to the ideas on your don’t do list and take one off and run that project to completion.

3. What does everyone else view as normal?

How many people around you think it’s totally normal to get interrupted by their phone every 5 minutes? They dive into answering Tweets or checking Facebook and in the process continually get distracted from their work.

Many things that everyone views as normal should go on your list of things you’re never going to do. If you can cut out so much of the fluff that people engage in everyday, then you’re going to have the time to dive into the projects that matter.

What’s ‘normal’ is also average, and no one wakes up expecting to be average. If you don’t want to be average put most of what those around you view as normal on your don’t do list.

If you can use these 3 questions above to build your don’t do list and then stick to it, you’re going to have so much more space in your life. Space to improve yourself with reading. Space to build relationships with those you care about. Space to build the business you want to build.

“If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be.” – Maya Angelou

Have you created your don’t do list before? How has it helped you? Leave your comments below!

Curtis McHale is a business coach and speaker. He mainly focuses on helping businesses build effective processes for vetting ideal clients and building a business that doesn’t take every hour of every day to run. A number of his clients have seen 30% jumps in income with no extra time needed.

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Change Your Mindset

The Secret Daily Routines Behind History’s Most Brilliant Thinkers

Uncover the daily rituals and hidden habits that powered history’s most brilliant minds to success.

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Why Daily Rituals Matter

Every great achiever has one thing in common: discipline. Behind the novels, inventions, discoveries, and masterpieces are small, consistent habits repeated daily. (more…)

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Did You Know

How to Turn a Simple Link-in-Bio Into a Powerful Brand Hub

Transform your forgotten bio link into a high-impact gateway that fuels engagement, clicks, and conversions across every social platform.

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Social media is one of the greatest marketing tools in 2025. According to a recent study, some 86% of marketers globally use platforms like Facebook and Instagram for advertisements, while 94% use it for content distribution.  (more…)

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Personal Development

These 11 Habits Will Make You More Productive, Successful, and Confident

Boost your focus, confidence, and results with 11 powerful habits successful people use every day.

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Successful people love to help beginners. They have an incredible work ethic and rarely complain. As a result, others naturally look up to them and want to follow in their footsteps.

But here’s the truth: there’s no success without sacrifice. You’ll need to give up comfort, excuses, and sometimes even social approval to accomplish your goals.

Value comes from solving problems, and these 11 powerful tips will help you become more productive, successful, and confident, starting today.

1. Take Short Breaks After Finishing a Task

Psychology shows it’s important to reward positive behaviour.

After completing a big task or finishing a book, take five minutes to walk, stretch, or simply breathe. This quick reset helps your brain recharge and strengthens focus.

Many great writers swear by morning walks, solitude, and reflection can unlock creativity.

But if you refuse to take breaks, don’t be surprised when burnout hits. Your brain needs recovery time just as much as your body does.

2. Schedule Your Most Important Tasks First

Multitasking kills productivity. If you want to get more done, try time blocking, a method where you dedicate set periods for specific tasks.

Productivity expert Caitlin Hughes explains, “Time blocking involves scheduling blocks of time for your tasks throughout the day.”

For example, if you’re a writer:

  • Research your topic at night.

  • Write your first draft in the morning (don’t worry if it’s rough).

  • Edit in the afternoon, great writing comes from rewriting.

You can’t buy more time. Use it intentionally and without regret.

3. Eliminate Distractions from Your Workspace

Focus is the foundation of success.

According to Inc. Magazine, it takes an average of 23 minutes to recover from a distraction. That’s nearly half an hour of lost productivity every time you check your phone.

Put your phone away. Close unnecessary tabs. And yes, limit your Netflix binges.

Meeting deadlines consistently is one of the fastest ways to stand out and earn respect.

4. Take Full Responsibility for Your Life

Entrepreneur Derek Sivers once said, “Everything is my fault.”

This mindset doesn’t mean self-blame; it means self-ownership. Stop pointing fingers, making excuses, or waiting for others to change.

If your habits (like smoking or drinking too much) hold you back, it’s time to make better choices. Your friends can’t live your dreams for you; only you can.

5. Invest an Hour a Day in Learning New Skills

Knowledge compounds over time.

Whether you read books, take online courses, or practise a craft, consistent learning gives you a competitive edge.

I used to struggle with academic writing, but I improved by studying the work of great authors and applying what I learned.

Your past doesn’t define you; your actions do. Every new skill adds another tool to your arsenal and makes you more unstoppable.

6. Develop a Growth Mindset

Psychologist Dr. Carol Dweck introduced the concept of fixed vs. growth mindset.

  • A fixed mindset believes success is based on natural talent.

  • A growth mindset believes success comes from effort and learning.

Choose the growth mindset. Embrace challenges. See failures as feedback. In today’s fast-moving digital world, adaptability is your biggest advantage.

7. Learn Marketing to Reach People Who Need You

I once believed marketing was manipulative, until I realised it’s about helping people solve problems.

If your work provides genuine value, marketing is how you let others know it exists. Even Apple spends billions on it.

Don’t be ashamed to promote your skills or business. Without visibility, your ideas will never reach the people who need them most.

Creative professionals who understand marketing and sales have an unfair advantage.

8. Ask Your Mentor the Right Questions

Good mentors can fast-track your growth.

While mentorship often costs money, it’s one of the best investments you can make. Great mentors don’t care about titles; they care about your progress.

If you don’t have access to a mentor yet, books are your silent mentors. Read the best in your field, take notes, and apply what resonates.

9. Build Confidence Through Action, Not Affirmations

Author Ryan Holiday once said, “I don’t believe in myself. I have evidence.”

Confidence doesn’t come from shouting affirmations into the mirror; it comes from proof. Doing hard things, keeping promises to yourself, and following through.

When you consistently take action, your brain gathers evidence that you can handle whatever comes next. That’s real confidence, grounded, earned, and unshakable.

10. Focus on Your Strengths

Your strengths reveal where your greatest impact lies.

If people compliment you on something often, it’s a clue. Lean into it.

A former professor once told me I was creative, and that simple comment gave me the confidence to go all in. I studied creativity, applied it daily, and turned it into my career advantage.

Double down on your strengths. That’s how you build momentum and mastery.

11. Identify and Challenge Your Limiting Beliefs

Your beliefs shape your reality.

For years, I believed I couldn’t be a great writer because of my chronic tinnitus and astigmatism, sensory challenges that made concentration difficult. But over time, I realised those struggles made me more disciplined, observant, and empathetic.

Your limitations can become your greatest motivators if you let them.

Avoid shortcuts. Growth takes time, but it’s always worth it.

Final Thoughts

Becoming productive, successful, and confident isn’t about working harder than everyone else. It’s about working smarter, consistently, and intentionally.

You don’t need to overhaul your life overnight. Start small: take a break after your next task, schedule your priorities, or spend one hour learning something new.

Every habit you change compounds into long-term success. Remember, true change comes from practising new behaviours.

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Success Advice

Why One-Size-Fits-All Leadership Will Always Fail (and What Works Instead)

The surprising truth about leadership styles that can make or break your team’s success.

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Why one-size-fits-all leadership doesn’t work
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Leadership has always been as much about people as it is about performance. Ken Blanchard, in his influential book, “The One Minute Manager”, put it simply: different strokes for different folks. (more…)

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