The 1-3-5 rule is designed around the reality that you don’t often hit all your daily goals but most likely will get at least one thing done. To help you achieve that objective, you set up your to-do list with one big thing that you plan to do. Next, you add three medium things and five small things.

They work. One in particular has had a major impact on our productivity: the 1-3-5 rule. Here’s the gist: Understand that you can't accomplish an endless number of things each day. Instead, accept that you can reasonably get one big thing, three medium things, and five small things done. So keep your daily to-do list to just those nine items.