[PODCAST 297]: Discernment and a Tiered List–Two “Secret Weapons” for Calm, Values-Centered Productivity

Hello! So happy to be back here on the podcast. Our daughter/wonderful team member, Alia, has done an amazing job podcasting these past several weeks while Eric and I were in Kenya with Village Impact (see the related links below for a video recap!). I love hearing her share her experiences and wisdom. She strengthens me, and her episodes beautifully illustrate how the principles we talk about here at LearnDoBecome literally work for every age and stage.

Today I thought it would be fun to talk about two “secret weapons” for calm productivity. (I could call them “useful tools,” but I like feeling like a ninja when I call them weapons.) 🙂 And when I say “calm, values-centered productivity,” I mean that we’re able to get the right things done and feel a deep sense of progress in our lives, but we’re not hurrying, hustling, jumping back and forth from thing to thing, etc. I have a tendency to do too much, move too fast, say yes to too many things, but in my heart of hearts, calm, values-centered productivity is the only kind of productivity I truly want in my life. 🙂

All right, so the two secret weapons I’m covering today are discernment and a tiered list, but I want to give a little background on why I’m even discussing this.

As Eric and I were traveling, we had a chance to talk to many, many people from different walks of life. Eric is incredibly extraverted, and our children joke that he makes friends with everyone and helps them rethink their business models, and then they ask him to be in their weddings. I’m more of an introvert, but I do genuinely care about others and try to be helpful, so between the two of us, we’re usually able to have a lot of solid, meaningful conversations.

When we meet new people, they usually ask us what we do, and we explain that we help people who are overwhelmed by the details of life to create simple systems so they can do what matters most. We talk about how we help people out of overwhelm and enable them to feel calm and present–even when there are thousands of emails, piles of stuff, and tons of ideas swirling in their minds.

They often widen their eyes, take a deep breath, and say things like, “Oh, I NEED that.” And we don’t go deep right there and start teaching them our STEP system, because sometimes they’re just trying to be polite and they don’t actually want us in their business. 🙂 But here’s what I notice from our conversations when they’re willing to share their struggles.

(1) They use procrastination and distraction as methods to feel FREE.

You can probably relate to this, but when we put something difficult off for a while, it feels kind of good. Like “I don’t have to do that if I don’t want to. I’m the boss of my life. See how strong and free I am!” And when we distract ourselves from doing those hard things–by doing something ELSE that feels more fun, perhaps, it’s like we’re laying a foundation for good things to come, so we can feel good about our intentions or our side projects–even though they’re distracting us from what we really need to do. Like, “I’m going to organize my kitchen because once it’s organized, I’ll be able to build my business.” (But then you still find something else to do later on instead of building your business, so you end up stuck or maybe even shutting down the business.)

(2) Their stressful issues typically don’t just go away.

We can get really good at masking the stress and pretending like everything is good, but unless we actually work on the deepest challenges we are facing, they are typically only going to get worse. For example, we met an entrepreneur who had started a brand new shop. She was struggling to manage her inventory, marketing, etc., and she wasn’t sure if she was going to be able to keep her shop open much longer. To make ends meet, she’d taken on some contract work that was taking quite a bit of her time, but the money felt good and helped stop some of the gaps she was facing. However, when she did have time to work on her shop, she found it overwhelming, so she would just watch TV, scroll on her phone, and relax. Which I TOTALLY understand–because I used to do the same thing when Eric and I were starting our first business back in 2007. That stress behind the scenes is still there, actually getting worse, and making it so your relaxation time isn’t actually relaxing you because subconsciously, you know there’s something else you need to be doing.

Okay, so what does this have to do with our secret weapons for today?

(1) Discernment

Asking ourselves the question, “What is the most important thing for me to do in my _______ (personal life, family, business, volunteer work)?” is incredibly important. And then using our discernment to answer that question appropriately is a skill (and, I would add, a gift from your Higher Power).

In the book The One Thing, authors Gary Keller and Jay Papasan ask, “What’s the ONE Thing you can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”

We can apply that question to multiple facets of our lives–our health, relationships, finances, purpose, etc.

What’s so interesting to me, however, is how infrequently we talk about discernment, as a society. It’s so easy to get distracted by our phones, to move through our days based on others’ agendas, or to just sit and do nothing because the alternative feels overwhelming.

And anyone can “make a list and check it off,” right? The skill comes as we use our discernment to put the best things on our lists, AND as we use our discernment to make adjustments along the way if our attention needs to shift to something more important.

So then that leads us to ask, “What can we do to protect our ability to discern?”

The answer might be different for you, but I personally prioritize things like spending time with my Higher Power, taking care of my mental health/thinking patterns, getting enough sleep, nutrition, and exercise, and connecting with my goals and vision each day.

When we see “discernment” as a secret weapon–or an incredibly beautiful gift–then “self care” isn’t optional. It’s essential because it protects this ability.

(2) A Tiered List

I love, love, love David Allen’s Getting Things Done® methodology. It has blessed my life in SO many ways. Some people give it a hard time, though, because it consists of “lots of lists.” I don’t see it that way, though. I see it as a visual way to take all the “stuff” in my mind and heart–and everything that used to clutter up my physical space–and organize it by what matters NOW and what might matter LATER.

Sometimes, though, our “now” lists gets super long, so I’ve created some guidelines for myself (and I teach them in our STEP program) to limit the number of projects, tasks, routines, etc. that I need to focus on at one time. This works through tiered lists. They’re simply set up so that the most important items are front and center, but the other ones aren’t forgotten. Here’s how it works:

For projects, we have Current, In Progress/Waiting, Next in Line, and Someday. I allow no more than 7-8 TOTAL projects (divided by Me, Family, and Beyond–Work/Volunteer Activities) in the “Current” section. Then I allow just a few to sit in “In Progress/Waiting,” maybe 10-20 in “Next in Line,” and perhaps 20-30 in “Someday.” Anything that doesn’t fit in those categories goes into a “Someday WAY Later” spot that’s tucked away.

For tasks, we have a Next Actions List and a “Next in Line” Next Actions List. My Next Actions List (video explanation linked at the bottom of this post!) is just a simple bookmark in my paper planner, and I try to have no more than 3 tasks in each category (home, to discuss, computer, phone, errands). The list also is supposed to be completed by the end of each week. (So if I know I won’t do something that week, I don’t put it on that list. I make a calendar reminder for it or I add it to my “Next-in-Line” Next Actions List that I review during my Weekly Review when I create my new bookmark.)

For routines, we have “must-do” routines and then “would-love-to-do” routines–these fold in with a Multiple-Choice Perfect Day. If I absolutely need/want/have to do something (like prepare healthy foods, finish specific projects, study my scriptures, exercise, take care of my home/family), those things are either already on autopilot, blocked out on my calendar, or given an assigned date in my digital task manager. There are LOTS of “would-love-to-do” routines, though, that I don’t want to fill up my calendar because it’s okay if they don’t happen, but I also don’t want to forget them. I have them on my digital Routines List, without deadlines, and I review them during my Weekly Review. These are usually extra fun things I might decide to do–like practice my guitar–or they are additional ideas I may do if I have energy (like reading certain books, helping certain people, sending encouraging texts to old friends, etc.).

The reason I get so excited about tiered lists is because most of the people here at LearnDoBecome have hundreds of thousands of things they want to do. If I’m guessing right, you’re compassionate, energetic, thoughtful, excited about a lot of things, eager to learn, and confident that you can make a difference in the world. Those are incredible characteristics, but if people like you don’t have tools to help organize all of those beautiful intentions, you end up feeling exhausted, frustrated, and unfulfilled…waking up overwhelmed and going to bed more overwhelmed. MY goal is for you to “wake up excited and go to bed content.”

LearnDoBecome Invitation:

If you’re thinking, “Okay, April, I’m willing to give your secret weapons a try. What should I do next?”

My invitation is as follows:

Take a moment to brainstorm what it would take to protect your gift of discernment. Most likely it’s going to involve some serious self-care. Commit to doing that.
Then go through your projects, routines, and tasks, and create tiered lists, like I outlined. If you want some help, sign up for our Welcome Kit, and we’ll take good care of you!

And Now for Some Community Celebrations!!

This first message comes from Judy:

This next message comes from Karen:

This next message is from Judy:

And this final message comes from Janet:

Upcoming Events at LearnDoBecome!

Our August 2025 ARISE topic is: Financial Health Check-In: Money Conversations that Matter

Our upcoming workshop will include some helpful, upbeat, and potentially life-changing conversations around a few solid finance sub-topics. Are you ready for “finances” to be included as one of your biggest strengths?

While talking about money management, mindset, and logistics can often feel complicated, our goal is for each ARISEr to feel confident, energetic, and deliberate around money-management, so we can all feel the JOY that comes when we use our financial resources to do what matters most.

This live workshop will be held on Tuesday, August 12th at 10am Pacific. (And a recording will be available afterwards!)

Click here to start your free 60-day trial of ARISE!

A live session of STEP Momentum is starting on Wednesday, September 3rd, for all STEP Mastery members!

Full details can be found on our information page, linked below, but this is a fantastic opportunity to go through the whole STEP Program and set up your own Command Central in 3 weeks. We’ll provide simple homework assignments 3 times a week, send encouraging texts, and provide accountability opportunities for you! Can’t wait!

Click here to learn more!