How To Use the “Ivy Lee Method” for Better Productivity

Picture this: You’ve just walked into the kitchen to make a turkey sandwich for lunch. You open the fridge to discover you’re out of turkey. Rats. So, you go to grab a plate to make something else and realize you’re completely out of clean plates. Turns out, you forgot to unload the dishwasher yesterday. That explains the pile of dishes in the sink and the disorganized state of your kitchen. You should probably wipe down the counters after you get rid of the clutter on top of them, but you don’t want to misplace the grocery list you started writing last night. The first thing on the list? Turkey.

If this feels like a not-so-uncommon occurrence for you, know that you’re not alone. Staying on top of your to-do list at home (and at work!) can feel downright Sisyphean. But a more than 100-year-old productivity hack could help you knock out all of the tasks on your list—and then some. It’s called the “Ivy Lee Method,” and for many people, it works.

What is the “Ivy Lee Method”?

The method dates back to 1918, when the president of Bethlehem Steel Corporation, Charles M. Schwab, hired productivity consultant Ivy Lee to make his workplace more efficient. The story goes that Lee requested 15 minutes with each of Schwab’s top executives, and laid out a few steps they should take every day. They were:

1. At the end of every day, make a list of the six most important tasks you need to complete the following day. No more, no less. You can use a Post-It note, your Notes app, or even the back of a receipt. 
2. Then, put those six things in order of importance. The most pressing items should be near the top.
3. The next day, get started on only the first task. See that task to completion before starting the second item on your list, and so forth.
4. Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t finish all of the tasks. Simply move your unfinished things to your list for the next day, and start again.
5. Repeat this process every day—and watch your worries about an unwieldy to-do list dissipate.

Does the “Ivy Lee Method” Work?

The idea is that a relatively short list of six things prevents decision fatigue. Every morning, you know which tasks you need to accomplish and in what order. It’s a method that can be applied to keeping your house tidy, staying on top of things at work, and plenty of other parts of your life.

“People often get distracted with low-priority tasks when things seem urgent in the moment,” explains Laura Vanderkam, a productivity expert and author of Tranquility by Tuesday. “When you flit back and forth between things you don’t get much done. But when you stick with important tasks until you finish them, you can feel an incredible sense of accomplishment.”

Indeed, crossing one thing off of your to-do list gives you a quick hit of dopamine. Then, without having to decide what to do next, you can move on to your next task—and knock that out, too. The beauty of the method lies in its simplicity.

If you’re still getting distracted by all of the things you could be taking care of at home, Vanderkam suggests adding a timer into your Ivy Lee Method.

“Given that housework can expand to fill the available space, I suggest people set a timer or at least decide how much time they intend to devote to it. If you plan to clean until you are “done” you will never truly be done (at least if you live with anyone else!),” she says. “But if you decide to spend 60 minutes cleaning, you will pretty naturally prioritize the most urgent things. Then you can give yourself permission to relax. There was a time to clean the house…and now is not that time.”

Interested in trying out such a time-honored productivity hack? Ready, set, go.