Dale Carnegie and his secret to success

As I keep pursuing the dream of a life well lived, I came across a story about Dale Carnegie. It stated that when he was close to retiring, a man asked him what the secret to success was. Dale told the man that every day he wrote down five things on his to do list. He would not move on to number two until number one was finished. If he got distracted he would retake his list as soon as possible. Apparently, he did not go to bed until all five items on the list were finished.

I like the idea of a five step to do list. It is certainly more achievable than a twenty or thirty point to do list. So I gave it a shot. And you know what? It is harder than it looks. As I have three main goals, I decided to have three items for the personal income goal, one for my health and one for my home decoration and organizing. Today I had done four out of the five items by 3:00 PM. Yet, I find myself at 10:50 Pm trying to complete the fifth item on my list.

Life gets in the way. I think that is why there are only five points to his list. He was taking into account not only the normal day to day strife. I think he knew that procrastination could get the best of you. But there is something to be said for having four things crossed off your list and wanting to cross that last one.... I will stay awake until I finish. I am after all, a perfectionist. Maybe I finally found a plan that works for me. I will keep you posted.