On Taking Control of Your To-Do List
How to choose your own adventure and own your experience at work and in life.
Last week, I wrote about GTD as the antidote to chaos. This week, I want to zoom in on the daily practice—how I manage my tasks inside TickTick, and why Oliver Burkeman’s “menu” metaphor changed the way I approach my to-do list.
The Pressure Cooker of Modern Leadership
Leaders today are under more pressure than ever. Companies are downsizing in favor of AI, cutting costs wherever possible, leaving leaders with too many reports, too many to-dos, more noise than ever—and fewer hours to deal with it. On top of that, social media tells us to work less and enjoy life more.
The scale of change is staggering: in the first two months of 2025, the U.S. federal government announced 62,530 job cuts across 17 agencies—a 41,311% increase over the same period in 2024. The private sector isn’t far behind, with tech, oil, and retail also restructuring and reallocating.
The instinct is to make longer lists, grind harder, and push through. But longer lists rarely solve the problem—they just amplify stress. That’s where Burkeman’s menu metaphor comes in.
Lists as Menus
A menu at a restaurant doesn’t demand you order everything. It presents options. The challenge isn’t to conquer the whole list but to make intentional choices.
“The same applies to my list of work projects. Sure, the contents of the menu is constrained by various goals and long-term deadlines. But the daily practice is just to pick something appetizing from the menu, instead of grinding through a list.” - Oliver Burkeman
This mindset has completely shifted the way I work.
It scales to teams too: in an EOS-run organization, everyone knows their accountabilities, KPIs, and how their work connects to the company’s Rocks. That clarity, combined with the menu approach, keeps teams focused instead of busy.
Not every business has a formal system—and that can be okay—as long as healthy, transparent communication is encouraged. Tasks must be openly discussed: not everything is urgent, and not everything is important.
Ideas flow both ways. Leaders need to own the noise they bring to the team, but team members should feel empowered to ask for clarification on priorities. Any murkiness slows everyone down. The rule is simple: if you’re unclear, speak up. Make sure the menu is visible and reviewed in your weekly 1:1 meeting.
Decision Fatigue Insurance
Decision fatigue—the mental exhaustion that comes from making too many choices—can quietly derail your day. As someone with a lot of ADHD and a dash of OCD, lack of clarity is paralyzing—if I’m not 100% sure what to do, I often do nothing at all.
GTD is my insurance: capture everything, clarify next steps, organize, and trust the system. TickTick becomes the engine for this system.
Here’s how I apply it daily:
Automate Routine Decisions
Tasks and Habit Tracker handles workouts, writing, household chores. Once it’s in TickTick, I don’t have to decide if or when.
Prioritize What Matters
Eisenhower Matrix or priority tags filter tasks into what’s urgent/important, scheduled, delegated, or deleted. Only high-impact tasks reach the “Today” list.
Delegate When Possible
Non-essential tasks get assigned to others (team members, contractors, family). TickTick + EOS accountability charts make it seamless.
Simplify Choices
Daily menu: pick 3–5 tasks. The rest stays on the backlog. Fewer choices = clearer focus, less stress, better execution.
By combining GTD principles with TickTick features, you create a daily system that insures your brain against fatigue—so your energy is reserved for the work that actually moves the needle.
TickTick as the Daily Operating System
TickTick isn’t just a to-do list; it’s my execution engine:
Habit Tracking: Daily routines become automatic, freeing mental bandwidth.
Pomodoro Timer: Focused 25-minute sprints turn execution into a rhythm.
Kanban, Calendar, and Eisenhower Views: See priorities at a glance and ensure alignment with Rocks.
Recurring Tasks: Home, work, and life obligations all live in the system—nothing slips through.
The menu + GTD + decision fatigue insurance combo makes it possible to work with intention instead of reaction.
Intentional Choices = Real Progress
Work and life have always blended for me, but now more than ever as I build a business and spend time with my son. Taking control of your to-do list doesn’t mean doing more—it means choosing deliberately what to focus on and protecting your energy for what truly matters.
Closing thought: In a world of shrinking teams and growing demands, the leaders who thrive won’t be the ones with the longest lists. They’ll be the ones who treat their lists like menus, shield their brains from fatigue, and execute with clarity.