Checklists for Routines

To help children with tasks, many times, we create checklists. This helps them remember what is next and learn the routine that is expected of them. Since this works for children, why can’t it work for adults?

Creating a New Routine

When you’re creating a new routine or workflow, a checklist can help you remember what is next without wasting brain energy on the task. If you want to start a bedtime routine, writing down the routine in order will help you remember what comes next. I use checklists for my personal and business routines and workflows in my life. Some examples are,

• Morning Routine

• Evening Routine

• Blog Post Writing Workflow

• Organizing Workflow

• Weekly Administrative Tasks

These are all routines and workflows that repeat either each day or each week. Having a checklist for each routine helps me remember each part and nothing falls through the cracks.

Delegating Tasks with Checklists

Another reason to make a checklist is for someone else to take on the task. In our house, I am the only one who does laundry, but that may need to change in the future. I have a laundry checklist. That way, when I need to outsource laundry to someone else (like my husband, who is an adult and fully capable of doing laundry), they know exactly what to do. Just use the checklist and run through the steps. Some examples of these are,

• Home cleaning checklist

• Lunch packing checklist

• Laundry Routine

• Children’s Bedtime Routine

These can be done by me or another person in my household. Everyone knows what to do because it is written out.

Creating checklists can be done digitally or on paper. I personally like digital checklists for myself because they can be used over and over again (I even have a checklist at the top of the document as I’m writing this as my blog post checklist). For my children, I have used paper checklists in a dry erase sleeve. This way, they can physically check off what they have completed. This can work well for routines that are done in one place, like the laundry room. 

How to Create a Checklist for a Routine

To create a routine or checklist, take some time to sit down and figure out all the parts of it. If you rush this, you will forget. Find some time by yourself and write down everything about the routine you want to make a checklist for. After you write everything down, create a system that you (or someone else) can repeat each time.

For example, my bedtime routine is done the same every single night. When I change it up or add a step, it takes some time to get used to the routine. I have had a bedtime routine pretty consistently for about three years. It starts at my kids’ bedtime or shortly after.

• Clean the kitchen

• Prep for the morning (coffee, kids’ breakfasts, kids’ lunches, waters)

• Relax | Watch TV together or talk and drink tea

• Charge watch, get a big water, and head upstairs by 8:30 pm

• Start the bath, brush my teeth, and charge my oura ring

• Take a bath while reading or watching a show and drink water

• After bath, dry off, put on pjs, do skincare, and get my oura ring

• Get in bed and read my book with my red light glasses on

• Go to bed by 9:30 pm at the latest

When I got an Oura ring and added it to my routine, I kept forgetting it and had to get out of bed to grab it (super annoying if you’re already in bed). Creating the checklist helped remind me not to forget it! And now, it is part of my routine and I don’t have to think about it.

Creating checklists has made my life so much easier and I don’t need to think about what I’m doing. I just go through the checklist and all of a sudden it’s time for bed! 

What kind of checklist would help you in your life? Send me a DM on Instagram at wildelyorganized and let me know what kind of checklist you are going to create!