I came up with an idea today: I think it would be useful to have a list of everything that a typical person ought to do. After all, there is quite a lot of stuff that a typical person ought to do; how else is a person supposed to remember it all?
Here's what I've come up with so far:
Health
Eating well.
Exercising regularly.
Mitigating common risks in everyday life (e.g. wearing a seat belt while driving).
Other everyday health stuff (e.g. not sitting down eight hours a day).
Visiting a doctor, a dentist, and (if necessary) an optometrist on a regular basis.
Being familiar with common health problems and what to do about them.
Being able to recognize medical emergencies and react appropriately.
Maintaining mental health (see also: pretty much this entire list).
Money
Educating oneself in career-related skills.
Getting a job and/or becoming self-employed.
Networking (see also: interpersonal interaction).
Investing one's savings appropriately.
Altruism
Donating to charity.
Volunteering for charity.
Doing favors for friends.
Interpersonal interaction
Developing and maintaining relationships with other people: friendly, romantic, family, others?
Discussion of useful topics.
Recreation
Hobbies, finding ways to enjoy yourself. (I'm not sure how to expand on this one.)
Responsibilities
Any responsibilities one has signed up for.
Productivity
Developing and maintaining one's ability to get stuff done. (Kinda vague, this one.)
Maintaining a list of what needs to be done.
Making good decisions about what to do. In particular, which of the items on this list to focus on and how to accomplish them.
Skills
Developing the skills one needs to carry out these tasks effectively, through education, experience, and discussion.
Anyone have any suggestions for additions or improvements?
Does my computer function reliably? Is it painful or
frustrating to use in any way?
Does my computer support my needs? Is there software available
that would assist me with common tasks?
Do I make backups regularly?
If my computer is lost, stolen, or crashes, am I prepared to
deal with it?
Phone
Does my phone function reliably? Is it painful or frustrating
to use in any way?
Does my phone support my needs? Are there apps available that
would assist me with common tasks?
If my phone is lost, stolen, or crashes, am I prepared to deal
with it?
Is my voice and data plan adequate?
Social Interaction
Wardrobe
Do my clothes fit well? Do they enhance and flatter my body
shape?
Do I have clothes appropriate to the situations I'm in?
Are my clothes up to date?
Do I have a well-defined personal style? Do I know what image I
am trying to project?
Are my clothes are all ironed, clean? (No creases, piles of
washing, torn clothing)
Hair
Do I need a haircut?
Should I try a new hairstyle?
Am I satisfied with my current stylist/barber?
Are there tools or products that would be useful?
Humor
Stories
Public speaking
Reputation and networking
Do I know what image I project? Do I know what my reputation
is?
Can others count on me? Do I keep my word?
Personal Finance
Income and consumption
Am I currently living below my means?
If I could only own 100 things, what would they be?
Am I capable of separating necessity and luxury?
Is my source of income stable?
How much financial independence should I have and how much
money would be necessary to achieve it?
Savings
Should I save more or less? Should I automate my savings?
Do I have six months living expenses in an easily accessible
account?
Do I know how much my savings and assets are worth?
Bills
Do I pay my bills on time?
Can I automate my bill payments?
Are there services I continue to pay for that I no longer need
(gym, Netflix, etc)?
Debts and obligations
Am I current on all my payments to individuals or companies?
Should I have greater or fewer lines of credit?
Does my credit card provide useful benefits? Do I know what the
available benefits are?
Do I have appropriate withholdings to cover taxes?
Do I file my taxes in a timely manner?
Are all parking tickets, fines, alimony, or child support paid
and current?
Insurance and contingency plans
Do I have adequate personal insurance (medical, life, accident,
disability, etc)?
Are my assests well insured (car, home, possessions, etc)?
Do I need a will? Is it accurate and up-to-date?
Have I made arrangements for potential emergencies? Do I have
important information and documents organized in a known
location?
Hobbies and leisure
Media
Should I listen to more or less music? Who are the best and
worst artists I currently listen to?
Should I listen to more or less diverse music? Are there genres
of music I've neglected? Who are the best artists in genres I
don't typically listen to?
Should I watch more or less television? Movies? Do I have to
follow TV shows as they air? Which movies should I see in
theaters?
Should I read more or less? Fiction? Non-fiction? Should I buy
books, go to libraries, buy an e-reader?
Am I being purposeful in choosing what media I consume? Why do
I watch, listen to, or read what I do?
Activities
Are there activities I once did and enjoyed, but haven't
recently?
Should I travel more?
Should I spend more time outdoors?
Identity and strategy
Values
Do I know what I want?
What achievements would make me really excited?
What "states of being" do I want to experience each day?
Are my priorities and values clearly defined?
Do I consistently focus my attention on what I want vs. what I
don't want?
Am I "successful"?
Is there another way of defining success that would make me
more satisfied?
How often do I compare myself to my perceptions of other
people?
What do I feel grateful for in my life and work?
Do I have something to consistently look forward to each day?
Tracking
Do I systematically externalize (write or record) what I think about?
Am I making it easy to capture my thoughts quickly, as I have them?
What can I do to improve my ability to observe the world around me?
Should I keep a journal? What should I write in it?
Planning
What has my attention right now?
Am I regularly asking myself appropriate guiding questions?
Do I spend enough time actively reflecting on my goals,
projects, and progress?
Have I found a planning method that works for me?
Action
Am I capable of making decisions quickly and confidently?
In what areas do I procrastinate? In what areas do I act impulsively?
Do I spend most of my time focusing on a single task, or
constantly flipping between multiple tasks?
Do I have habits I should eliminate?
Fears and barriers
What am I afraid of?
Have I created an honest and complete list of the fears I'm
holding on to?
Have I confronted each fear to imagine how I would handle it if
it came to pass?
Am I capable of recognizing and correcting self-limitation?
I came up with an idea today: I think it would be useful to have a list of everything that a typical person ought to do. After all, there is quite a lot of stuff that a typical person ought to do; how else is a person supposed to remember it all?
Here's what I've come up with so far:
Health
Money
Altruism
Interpersonal interaction
Recreation
Responsibilities
Productivity
Skills
Anyone have any suggestions for additions or improvements?
edit 1: some suggestions by Rain and aelephant