We all need to be organized. We all need to accomplish more and be more productive. We all need to make more efficient use of our time. What to do?

That reminds me of a song by OK Go which says, “What to do? Sweetheart, you’ll find mediocre people do exceptional things all the time.” So if mediocre people can do exceptional things (and you’re far from mediocre, right?) so can you!

One of the best ways to accomplish great things is to have a plan of action, and that’s where lists come in. You make a grocery list, you make a Christmas list, and you make to-do lists. A casual to-do list is a great start. But to be most prosperous in life, there is a more lofty class of lists that beckons us: the life list.

The life list is just one way of saying it. You can call it “goal list,” “dream list,” “plan of action” or whatever makes your heart go pitter patter. What’s important is that you make the list.

A life list should include the following things. First of all, it needs to include things you want to accomplish. Put down even your craziest dreams (the sky is the limit here). Thinking up the impossible has been a miracle for inventors and entrepreneurs who transformed those impossibilities into reality. That can be you.

Remember, seemingly mediocre people can do exceptional things. By the same token, exception people like you can do mediocre things. How about being an exceptional person who lives up to the title? Now THAT would be great. A life list can help.

The accomplishments heading of your life list should include both long-term goals and short-term goals subcategories. It should include distinctions between realistic and innovative plans of action.

A life list might also include things you are thankful for and things you have already accomplished which you should not take for granted. While it is important that we have the drive to strive, we should also cooperate with our urge to appreciate. Again, that means being thankful and not taking things for granted. Happiness is not found exclusively through hope in the future, but appreciation and respect for the positives (the “silver lining,” if you will) in the past and present.

Now that you have a general outline for your life list, expand upon each topic with a separate page explaining in detail. Use a spiral notebook or a folder on your computer desktop to keep your ideas together in one big group. Stay accountable to yourself. Check in with your life list and see if you are still striving toward the goals and dreams you had when the list was originally made. Feel free to update and revise the list, but never cross anything off that you haven’t accomplished unless you decide it isn’t a desire. Never believe that anything is out of reach or that you’re too old to reach for the stars. Believe in yourself, God, and others; anything is possible with enough faith.

One last thing: don’t let your life list drag you down. Don’t beat yourself up if you can’t accomplish what you’d like to. Always keep things in perspective and again, look at the bright side as often as possible. Life is too short not to.