Get in control with a to-do list.

You might think you lack control of your daily life because you have too much work to do. But, as with so many things, perception is not always reality.

We perceive that we have too many tasks to complete because we don't actually know how many tasks we have to complete. This perception of being overwhelmed with work feeds on itself, compounding the problem.

Without a central place to go to for your list of "things to do," you are forced to use your memory and "guess" at the level of uncompleted work in your life.

Look at it this way: Imagine if all of the numbers you keep in your phone instead had to be remembered. If you're like me, you have way too many phone numbers to recall by memory. The perception would be that you have "too many numbers," when the reality is that you have too many numbers to commit to memory.

Do you worry about having too many numbers? Of course not, because you know that you can simply go to your phone list in your phone when you need to call someone.

The same thing applies to your tasks. Most people walk around having to remember what they need to do. And if they are keeping a list, it's likely not centralized. They may have papers scattered all over their desk with to-do items jotted down here-and-there. While that may help, chances are that keeping your lists like that only feeds the feeling of "clutter" and being overwhelmed with too much to do.

A central location for your "task memory" will solve a mountain of problems. When you think about what you have to do, you don't have to "guess" at how much work you have as long as you can look at your list and know. Getting your tasks into a single, central list is the first step you can take to getting your daily life in control.

Once you've made having a to-do list as natural to you as having a list of numbers in your phone, you will no longer be frazzled not knowing if you're forgetting something. That alone will adjust your perception of your workload.

Make a to-do list. Make it routine to use it. Chip away at your tasks, one at a time, and remove them from the list when they're done.