This paint chip to-do list hack is one of the simplest, yet best hacks EVER. And it’s free. The idea was born out of my frustration with post-it note colors. I know, I know, that is SUCH a blogger thing to say. “Post its just don’t go with my aesthetic.” Well, they don’t! Sorry, not sorry.
That’s when I became inspired to do something with all the paint chips I have lying around. I love looking at the paint chips in the hardware store, and I’ve been known to take several (like 20-30) home with me to use for mood boards or as inspiration for color palettes. But this idea is WAY better. Why not use them as color coded to-do lists?
Color-coding has become really key in order for me to keep organized day-to-day. So, I especially love that paint chips can give you color-coding ability while also giving you variety within the color family. You can decide how you want to use it. Tasks can be ranked from most important (top, darkest color) to least important (bottom, lightest color), or from biggest to smaller, longest to quickest, or first to last.
For example, I opted to use peachy-orange paint chips for my E-mail Marketing to-do list which has several things on it, as you can see. This is a real life example of what I have on my actual to-do list!
I will hang these on the wall beside my desk, where I will see them every day. When it’s time to do focused work on these tasks, I’ll sometimes tape the paint chip to my computer to remind myself that these tasks are the only ones I’m supposed to be working on. If you can’t tell, I need a lot of help getting things done 😉
When I’m done with a task on the list, I will sometimes snip it off and throw it away rather than crossing it out. It’s very satisfying to see your paint chips get smaller and smaller until they’re completely gone.
I hope you’ll be making a trip to the hardware store sometime soon to try this in your own life! This could work well for busy families or in an office space. I really can’t express just how much this little hack has helped me stay organized.
