Listen. I LOVE a to-do list. I love feeling productive (actually according to my therapist, maybe a little TOO much), the feeling of checking something off, and the very optimistic idea that maybe THIS is the week that I finally knock it all out.

Reality is, most marketing to-do lists never make it past the planning stage. Not because we’re flaky. Not because we “just need to be more disciplined.” But because when we create a marketing to-do list, we’re carrying a list to carry entire business strategies… and Google docs are amazing, but that’s a lot for them, y’know?

Here’s what’s working for me right now and what might work for you too.

Create A Marketing To-Do List #1: Bucket your tasks by bigness (technical term)

Not every task needs the same level of brainpower. Some need deep silence and copious amounts of snacks. Others, you can crank out in the time it takes your tea to steep. So let’s stop treating them all like they’re equal.

Here’s how I sort things:

• The Big Stuff: Deep focus. Nobody around. Notifications off. A carefully curated playlist. These are tasks like writing a new freebie, building an onboarding sequence, refreshing your website copy (and trying not to get distracted by adding more animations heh)
• The Mid Stuff: Takes 30–60 minutes.These are tasks like designing promo graphics, perfecting and scheduling newsletters, or searching for PR opportunities.
• The Quick Stuff: Takes 5–10 minutes. Fixing up your bio, checking for broken links, ONE MORE THING.

Having this breakdown means when you get 10 minutes between calls, you don’t just sit there scrolling. You pull up your Quick list, knock one thing out, and feel incredibly accomplished. The best.

Create A Marketing To-Do List #2: Give yourself an hour a day

Right now, I’m blocking off a full hour FIRST THING BEFORE I GET INTO MY HEAD every morning to chip away at my marketing list. Just one. 

It’s SO simple. And it’s working like gangbusters.

I’m not filling the hour with a bunch of nonsense. I’m choosing one thing I can actually do, in the time I actually have (8 minutes left for this blog post!), and doing it. MAJOR progress.

Block the time and guard it fiercely. Have your entire staff think that you’re slacking and coming in an hour late every day 🤣, or put it on your calendar like a client call for your future self. (You know, the future self that has a steady stream of leads and still has time to make fresh bread.)

Create A Marketing To-Do List #3: Choose ONE priority

I know the productivity gurus say “three priorities per day” but honestly? ONE is enough.

If I can get a real thing done, I’m doing all right.

Of course, we all know that we’re probably going to get bonus priorities #2 and #3 done too. Just don’t put 7 projects on your list and wonder why you feel like a rabid squirrel before 10 a.m. (Maybe cut back on the coffee too hmm? 🤣)

When everything is a priority, nothing is. When you create your marketing to-do list, shrink it so you can win the day.

Create A Marketing To-Do List #4: Quit overthinking where you create your marketing-to-do list

This part? It doesn’t matter. Use a crusty notebook (honestly, my favourite despite having spent an EMBARRASSING chunk of my life cycling through Notion, Asana, Trell, Clickup, Upbase, Honeybook, etc etc etc), use the Notes app, use a Google Doc named “plz help” 💀 It doesn’t matter where the list lives as long as you’re actually using it! Whatever helps you take ACTION is the right system. Full stop. Yeah? Okay.

I know. NO FUN AT ALL.

Create A Marketing To-Do List #5: Please, for the love of your sanity, let go of perfect

One of the biggest reasons stuff doesn’t get done? We’re trying to make it flawless.

I’m posting NINE Instagram posts this year (yep, that’s all — read more about that here), and I spent a laughable amount of time polishing them up. And guess what? One of my last slides — you know, the important last slide with the actual call to action — is missing. I’m still debating whether I should delete it and repost it. 

In the end, I’ll leave it.

Because here’s the truth: when you’re only publishing one thing, you expect it to carry everything. All your brilliance, all your strategy, all your worth, all the million verrrrry important things you have to say. I get it. I really do. But that’s too much pressure for a carousel.

Your community isn’t picking your content apart. They’re skimming it while they wait in line for a latte. Nobody’s thinking, “Hm. Bit of a weak CTA on that last slide.”

Okay that’s a lie. *I* am probably thinking that. 🤣 But your dream client? They’re not.

I read somewhere once that the only way to get from where you are right now, to where you want to be, is a sea of imperfect work. A SEA YOU GUYS. That’s a lot. The sooner we get swimming, the better!

Create A Marketing To-Do List #6: Write down the rabbit holes

Distractions are okay but don’t chase ‘em. The best thing to do is jot them down or else they’ll run the show.

So instead of hopping from one task to another, keep a parking lot of your ideas. This can be a sticky note or a “later” list. It doesn’t matter what you call it as long as it’s some place to write down those bouncy ideas so they don’t take over your entire day! Jot them down, return to what you were doing, and come back to the shiny thing once your brain has space for it.

Sometimes the difference between getting stuff done and spiraling is just… writing it down instead of clicking it open.

Create A Marketing To-Do List #7: One last thing

If your list is already six miles long and you’re drowning in shoulds, don’t take this as a “do more” prompt. This is permission to do less, but more intentionally. To take your scattered post-its and voice notes and half-finished outlines and give them an actual shape. And if that still feels like too much?

📅 Book a Marketing Sprint!

I’ll turn your messy list into real, working, revenue-driving marketing… all while you go do literally anything else. (And yes, there will be snacks for BOTH of us.)