I am a list person.
Checking off boxes makes me happy. There is even this super handy app called “Doit.im” that helps me keep my life in order. I get to check off boxes every day or very easily move them to another day. I seriously think checking off boxes releases dopamine in my brain. Kinda twisted, I know… Unless maybe you’re a list checker yourself, then you get it!
I also happen to be the mom to an amazing young lady, who is NOT a list person.
A girl who is creative, non-linear, super right-brained, and definitely outside the box! She is a huge part of the reason I don’t do a ton of homeschool planning, and why I plan backwards. She doesn’t like to do things in any particular order and is often almost always thinking of something new to create. I do print out weekly lists of the individual core things(math, writing, chores, piano practice) that need to be done each day, but usually I am cattle prodding a bit to make sure those things get done (besides piano, I usually don’t have to cattle prod her to get that completed).
But there’s a phenomenon that happens occasionally in our home.
And I can’t remember the first time it happened. And I can’t quite figure out why it works so well. It goes like this… I leave the house for a few hours and she is left in the care of my husband or my parents. I leave her with a list to complete. She doesn’t complain. I come home 2 hours later. The list is complete. WHAT?!
I’m still trying to figure out WHY this works.
In fact, I almost look forward to days I have to leave for a bit because there is little to no battling. I’m trying to figure out how to replicate this on our typical days. But I think that’s part of it… me leaving for a few hours is not a typical day and she craves novelty and non-typical.
I have my other hypotheses… Like maybe she loves being independent and this is foreshadowing of how she will do “in the real world”. Or maybe it feels like it’s a ‘beat the clock’ type thing and there is a little fire under her tush once I leave the house. Whatever it is, I welcome it! Especially in our current season, where my 8-year-old is doing 9 months of Vision Therapy, and I occasionally leave my daughter with my mom or dad. I can leave her with a list, and know it will get done!
Are you a list person or do you loathe them? How about your kids? If you’re not a list person, what motivates you to get stuff done?
