196: The Truth About Why To-Do Lists Don't Work for Busy Entrepreneurs (Plus 3 Better Alternatives)

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The Truth About Why To-Do Lists Don't Work for Busy Entrepreneurs (Plus 3 Better Alternatives)

Feeling overwhelmed by your endless to-do list that never seems to get shorter? Your to-do list isn't working because it wasn't designed for the complex reality of running a business. In this episode of Thrive in Five, business coach Cindy Gordon reveals the truth about why traditional to-do lists fail entrepreneurs and shares three proven alternatives that successful business owners use instead.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why traditional to-do lists create "completion addiction" that sabotages real progress
• The science behind why your brain can't prioritize effectively from flat task lists
• Why to-do lists work for groceries but fail for building businesses
• The Priority Matrix Method: how to distinguish between urgent and important business tasks
• Energy-Based Time Blocking: matching complex work to your peak performance hours
• The Three-Priority Daily Focus system that forces you to focus on revenue-generating activities
• Real client transformation: from 47-item overwhelm to 40% revenue increase in one month

Perfect for: Overwhelmed female entrepreneurs and business moms who are tired of feeling like failures despite being constantly busy.

Episode Highlights: "To-do lists work for grocery shopping, not for building empires."

"Successful entrepreneurs don't just work harder - they work smarter with systems designed for business complexity, not personal errands."

Stop confusing being busy with being productive. Start using productivity systems designed for entrepreneurs who are building something meaningful.

👉 Tag @ExclusivelyCindy on Instagram/Facebook and share how you're using this tip as an overwhelmed entrepreneur - I'd love to connect and hear your story!

💡 Don't forget to subscribe for more quick productivity tips for overwhelmed business owners and female entrepreneurs!

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The OVERWHELM CURE - Beat entrepreneur overwhelm in one hour! Perfect for overwhelmed business owners who need fast results - https://exclusivelycindy.thrivecart.com/the-overwhelm-cure/

Daily Success Framework - Productivity system for overwhelmed entrepreneurs: https://stan.store/cindygordon/p/get-my-daily-success-framework-now

Get your Printable Success Affirmation Cards for Business Owners here: https://stan.store/cindygordon/p/success-affirmation-cards-digital-download

Connect with Cindy Gordon - Reality Check Method Coach for Overwhelmed Entrepreneurs:

• Website: ExclusivelyCindy.com
• Instagram: ...

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
What if I told you that yourto-do list isn't failing because
you're disorganized or lazy?
But it was because it was neverdesigned to handle the complex,
multi-layered reality of runninga business.
In today's episode, we aretalking about the hard truth
that nobody wants to admittraditional to-do.
Lists are productivity sabotagefor many business owners.

(00:22):
If you've ever felt overwhelmedby your endless task list.
And wonder why you can neverseem to complete anything.
This episode is going to be agame changer for you.
Welcome back to Thrive in Five,where I give you a quick burst
of motivation and productivityin five minutes or less.
Spend just five minutes with meand you'll be ready to tackle

(00:43):
your day like a pro.
Whether you're focused on lifeor business.
I'm Cindy, your host, aself-made entrepreneur.
Busy mom and business coach,I've built and sold multiple
digital businesses ranging fromfive to six figure successes.
So when it comes to managingtime and priorities in both life
and work, I get it.

(01:03):
I've been there and I am here tohelp you thrive.
Here is what I see constantly.
Women are using a productivitysystem designed for simple
linear tasks to complete complexdynamic business tasks.
Your to-do list has everythingfrom respond to emails to launch
a new program sitting side byside, as if they're equivalent,

(01:25):
and the result you feel like afailure every single day because
your list never gets shorter.
You're crossing off tasks whileimportant business building
activities.
Sit there mocking you.
You start the day feelingoverwhelmed and at the end of
the day, feeling behind.
Even when you've beenproductive, the problem isn't
you.
This is a system problem to-dolists.

(01:47):
Work great for grocery shopping,but not building empires, here's
the science behind why to-dolists often fail entrepreneurs.
Your brain processes all thetasks on a list as equally
urgent, which triggers decisionfatigue and overwhelm.
When the task update yourInstagram bio sits right next to

(02:08):
Create Sales Funnel, your braincan't prioritize effectively.
Traditional to-do lists, alsocreate what I call completion
addiction.
You end up doing quick, easytasks just to feel productive
while avoiding the harderrevenue generating activities
that actually move your businessforward.
This is why you can be busy allday, but feel like you've

(02:31):
accomplished nothing meaningful.
For entrepreneurs, especiallythose with A DHD or
neurodivergent brains, thissystem can be particularly
problematic because it doesn'taccount for energy levels,
complexity, or business impact.
So this is what I teach myclients instead of traditional
to-do lists.
These are some of the systemsthat I use personally and

(02:53):
implement as my core frameworksin my teaching methodology.
The first alternative to a to-dolist is The priority matrix
method.
So instead of a flat list,you're using a four quadrant
system.
We're labeling them as importantand urgent.
Important, but not urgent.
Urgent but not important, andneither, which I often like to

(03:15):
call the, Nope.
Category.
Your revenue generatingactivities go in the important
but not urgent.
This is where wealth is built.
Most entrepreneurs live in theurgent quadrants and wonder why
they're always stressed, butnever profitable.
The next alternative is theenergy based time blocking
system.
This is where you replace tasklists with calendar blocks

(03:38):
matched to your energy levels.
You schedule in your mostchallenging work during your
peak hours and batch similaractivities together.
Instead of write a newsletter onthe list, you would block off
nine to 10:00 AM on Tuesday forcontent creation when your brain
is fresh.
The third alternative is thethree priority daily focus.

(03:59):
Each morning you would choosejust three priorities.
One revenue generating activity,one business building task, and
one maintenance item.
That's it.
Everything else goes on asomeday list and you review that
weekly.
This forces you to distinguishbetween what's truly important
and what's just busy work.

(04:20):
So here's how to transition awayfrom your overwhelming to-do
list system.
First, do a complete audit ofyour current list and categorize
all the revenue generating, allthe business building and all
the maintenance tasks.
You'll be shocked at how much ofyour list is actually low impact
busy work.
Next, you're gonna choose onealternative method of the three

(04:41):
that I listed and commit to itfor two weeks.
Don't try to optimize or combinesystems.
Just pick one and test it fully.
I recommend starting with thethree priority daily focus
method because it is thesimplest transition.
Next, you're gonna create aparking lot for all of those
random tasks that pop up.
When you think of somethingduring your focused work time,

(05:03):
write it down in your parkinglot instead of adding it to
today's priorities, review thisweekly and decide what actually
needs to happen.
Listen, if your to-do list isoverwhelming you, it's not
because you're not disciplinedenough or not organized enough.
It's because you're trying touse a hammer to perform surgery.
The tool doesn't match thecomplexity of what you're

(05:25):
building.
Successful entrepreneurs don'tjust work harder, they work
smarter with systems designedfor business complexity and not
personal errands.
When you align your productivitysystem with your entrepreneurial
reality, everything becomesclearer and more manageable.
This is exactly thetransformation that I help my
one-on-one clients and thosemembers of the growth collective

(05:48):
achieve.
We move from chaotic task liststo strategic business systems
that actually drive results, nowgo choose your alternative and
start building the business thatyou actually want, and not just
managing the busy work thatkeeps you stuck.
Oh, and remember, you've gotthis.
Thanks for spending these fiveminutes with me on Thrive in

(06:10):
Five.
If today's tip was helpful,don't forget to subscribe and
share this with another amazingperson who could use a little
motivation.
I'd love to hear how you'reusing these tips.
Tag me at exclusively Cindy onsocial media and let me know how
they're helping you.
And if you've got a moment,leaving a review would mean the
world to me and would helpothers find the podcast too.

(06:31):
Until next time, stay focused,keep thriving, and remember
you've got this.