Why Countdowns Should Rule Our Lives
Because who remembers what today’s date is?
When was the last time you set a countdown timer on your phone? I bet it was within the past day or two. You just put a pizza in the oven or your laundry in the dryer and you set a countdown timer to know when you needed to check on that pizza or go through the pain of folding your clothes. It worked great, right? You knew exactly how much time you had left until you needed to go downstairs (Or to the laundromat) and get your clothes. Ok, now change it up. Think if you were to set the date and time you had to go back and check on your clothes. Sunday July 24th at 11:33AM. Ok, 5 minutes has passed. It is 11:17AM, how much time do you have left? Now you have to do math…ugh forget it. Then you get to the dryer early and have to wait for the spin cycle to complete and that 2 minutes feels like 2 hours. The second approach is crazy, right? Who would ever set a due date and then have to constantly think and remind themselves how much time something has left? I bet you do it every week when you create your to do list… Am I right?
People rely on countdowns to know when they’re done with something or when something is going to be done. Typically people use countdowns for short term items like exercising, cooking, and laundry. But why? Because people want to know exactly how much time is left until something is complete. But, it is typically something that they are waiting for to be complete rather than something waiting to be complete, like a task or project. Why not use a countdown to know exactly how long you have left to update your passport or get your taxes to your accountant or complete your part of the team project?
Many people have different ways of keeping track of tasks. They write them down on a piece of paper, they use their mind, or they use some sort of application be it mobile or on desktop. But when you make those tasks or projects, what do you do? You set a date. You need to get your passport renewed by May 5th. Great. Wait, what is the date today? How many days are in April? Is that a Tuesday? Ah screw it…it’ll get done…eventually.
Why not use a countdown for your to-dos? You can make a task saying ‘Renew Passport’ and set it as September 5th. Instead of it showing up on your calendar the week it has to be complete, or just a random date on your to-do list app, have your to-do list app tell you specifically how much time you have left to get it done.
Welcome to Vista List. Vista List allows you to create projects, tasks and subtasks and add a due date to them (if you choose to do so). Vista List then turns that into a countdown instead of a date you don’t know if it is a Tuesday or how far it really is away. You just know it is due sometime in the future. Open up Vista List and you’ll know you have 5 days, 7 hours and 20 minutes before you need to get your passport renewed. Isn’t that much more helpful? You know exactly how far in advance 5 days is. I wouldn’t know that September 5th is a Monday or I have to get to the agency by 4PM. With Vista List you just know how much longer you have to get it done. Countdowns. Create a sense of urgency knowing exactly how much time is left to complete your work project or personal task.
When you open up your to-do list you just see a bunch of projects and tasks that have dates associated with them. You really have to look and think to understand how to approach them. With Vista List, just a quick look will give you an overview of how much longer you have to complete those projects and tasks with little thought or interpretation. Orange means it is due soon, Red means your overdue and you should get on it!
5.4.3.2.1. Sign-Up for the iOS Beta now at www.vistalist.co and have the opportunity to provide feedback to make Vista List better.
