That's funny, but I've actually heard that recommended professionally as a legitimate tactic.
this post was submitted on 17 Oct 2025
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Helps with remembering what you actually did that day because often i get so sidetracked it looks like i did nothing at all.
This is exactly why I started doing it lol. I was getting depressed on days where it felt like I was so busy and overwhelmed but I felt like I accomplished nothing.
Made a list to track what I was doing today - 4 hours.
God that's too real.
Feeling unaccomplished because instead of getting things done you felt like you were just fending things off.
I do this especially at work. However lately I’ve stopped since late July, probably due to my depression getting worse. I still manage to get things done but my focus is out the window.
I felt like I wasn't getting enough done, so I started making reports on what I had worked on at the end of the day. That helped me realize that while I may not have "completed" a lot, I had made progress on a lot of things. It helped me realize that I was working a lot more than I thought.
I do that at work with Jira tickets
So do I, even though it’s my own board and nobody can see it
That is just tracking and you should!
always track your progress. ur todo list isnt a full list of things to do. adding things u did later is tracking progress and not expecting ur todo list to be perfect
Unless I make a list and cross off items, I feel zero accomplishment/dopamine.
- ~~Make a list~~
- ~~Cross off items~~
Oh yeah, that's the stuff.
~~Reply to comment~~.
Huh.. Nice
That's also called a "Ta-Da List".
I do that, less for the immediate dopamine and more for the sake of creating a log/record so that when I inevitably forget what I accomplished yesterday/last week/back in August, I can look that shit up for a mega dopamine hit when I realize I was a lot more productive than I thought.
I always underestimate how much there is to do. "Oh just laundry and that form basically, two things. Picking up the package should be clear. No list needed, easy day!"
Then, when I really don't make a list, I don't even do these three things. When I do make a list, it's many, many more things, but a higher chance to do several of those.
And yes, when I don't check it off from the list, and be it by adding just to check it off, it feels like I did nothing.
This is the way
Fuck I can’t keep seeing these while I remain “undiagnosed”
I do this too, mostly so that when I look at the previous week's list I don't feel bad that I missed stuff. I can see the other bullshit that I had to do instead and see that I wasn't just slacking.
If I didn't cheat on my to-do lists I'd never cross anything off.
Thanks for reminding me to do this
Me when my job performance is tracked by “tickets closed”.
Are there people who don't do this?
doin this every day
I do the same thing, but it's usually when I forgot to add to the list but didn't forget to do it.
Heard someone call that a ta-dah list, which is what all my lists are called now
My to-do list has become a place where my tasks go to die. I think it is because in my mind if it’s there I won’t forget to do it now so it’s no longer urgent and I don’t do it. It’s growing longer and longer now.
I put "write a to-do list" on every to-do list
No joke, it’s the most direct solution to the problem of “shadow work” that I know of.
Unexpected yet unavoidable tasks are just a fact of life, even for the experienced and organized. Tracking them makes you better at anticipating them next time.
Advanced calculus: do the same for recreation, rest, entertainment, and hobbies to re-frame fun as a responsibility and recovery as well-invested time.
Sometimes I do it too. Usually when I'm so deep in some side quest it overshadowed the main story, and suddenly remember there's a to-do list to go through.