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That $20 notebook recommendation from a stranger at Starbucks saved my slow season

Some guy saw me stressing over my spreadsheet during a slow January in Austin. He said just write down three tasks each morning on paper, no digital stuff. I thought it was old school nonsense. But I tried it for 2 weeks. My income went up maybe $400 that month because I actually finished stuff instead of jumping between tabs. Has anyone else had a random tip from a stranger actually work out?
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3 Comments
gracej99
gracej997d agoOG Member
January 2019 in a San Francisco coffee shop, some guy told me to ditch my entire to-do list and just keep a mental reminder of the one most urgent thing. I tried it for a month. I missed three deadlines and forgot a client meeting because I thought I'd remember it. Lost about $800 that month. Not all strangers have good advice. Your three-task system sounds like it worked for you but I'd bet half the people who try that end up worse off like I did.
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margaretc42
Oh man, that's such a good story. I had something similar happen to me years ago. I was waiting on a long line at the post office and this older lady told me to always carry a small notepad in my car for random thoughts, not just work stuff. I still do it, it's saved me from forgetting a bunch of little errands. Your mileage may vary, but sometimes the simplest advice is the hardest to actually follow.
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charlieh74
Notepads beat mental reminders every time.
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