Lately, my mind races all day, and keeps me up at night. I’m jacked up, physically wiped but mentally straining forward at the same time. I’m eating in quick gulps, and rushing back to my desk to get just a bit more work in. My cat looks at me mournfully, chastising me for failing her strict playmate needs.

It’s an exciting time over at the QRW desk, but good lord, I’m exhausted. I’m devoting the majority of my days to an assignment load that includes articles on pharmaceutical marketing, the local nursing response to a tragic event, and the first green-certified homeless shelter. That’s my paying work. The rest of my time is spent on non-paying work, but infinitely fascinating and rewarding stuff. I’m spending as much time as possible (multi-tasking like a frickin champ) on my blog, and submitting my novel to agents, and developing nonfiction book ideas, and looking into adjunct teaching. And to top it all off, my boyfriend and I are buying a place and moving in four weeks.

The challenge, besides fitting it all in, is keeping these massive projects in my head. I’ve learned in the last couple years as a freelancer that thankfully, finally, that annoyingly anal nature of mine is actually pretty damn useful. Here’s one way I stay sane and keep those big projects moving:

• Break every single project, no matter how small, into digestible portions. Write these portions on a master list, and start an electronic and physical file for that project. Example: For my blog, I differentiate between daily, every-other-day, and weekly tasks. On a daily basis, I aim to write a freelance-related post, offering resources or ideas. Additionally, I read other freelancing blogs and comment on interesting or relevant posts. Every other day I plan to offer a more general post, perhaps some of that fun word porn or cultured pop. On a weekly basis, I do some maintenance, poring over a growing resource file, trying out new methods of publicizing my blog, and more.
• Assign these portions out into “to-do” tasks in your personal organizer. I use an old-school daily planner, and write each daily and weekly task down. Use whatever electronic or physical method works for you.
• Reap the joys of crossing each item off the list as you complete them, getting closer to your goals with each X. I admit: I derive way too much pleasure out this. As I said, I’m a organization freak.
• Review your master list each week, and assign tasks for the next week.

I purchased Getting Things Done last year, curious about all the crazy disciplehood that the book has inspired and whether I could learn anything about productivity. For those who haven’t read it, David Allen has some interesting thoughts, but they all boil down to similar tactics to my daily routine: break big projects into parts, schedule these parts, and do them bit by bit. Rinse and repeat. Too bad I missed out on the whole rich guru thing.

The power of multiple, multi-faceted lists help me keep massive projects in my head and on task. What approaches do you use?