Close the day with a five-line snapshot
Leave tomorrow a clean handoffA workday often stays open in your head because no one marked where it ended. Take three minutes to save five lines before closing the laptop. This is not a productivity scorecard. It is a small handoff from today's attention to tomorrow's.
1
What moved today
Name one piece of work that changed state, even if it did not finish. Use evidence rather than mood: a decision was recorded, a draft exists, a question was sent, or a blocker became clear.
2
What is still open
Write the most important loose end in one line. Separate a real unfinished task from a vague feeling that there is more to do. If nothing must carry over, write that plainly.
3
The next visible action
Choose the smallest action that would restart the work: open one file, compare two options, call one person, or test one case. Avoid labels like 'continue project' that make tomorrow rediscover the whole problem.
4
Who or what you are waiting for
Record any dependency with its owner and the date you will check again. If no one else is involved, note the information or decision you need from yourself. This keeps waiting from masquerading as forgetting.
5
Where to begin tomorrow
Finish with the exact document, desk item, or question that should be first in view. Put the five lines where you will actually see them, then close the tools for the day. Tomorrow begins with a cue, not a search.
