Each day has the same number of hours, but not everyone uses them the same.

That's one reason some of us look with envy at people who seem to make better use of their "24/7."

Daryl Hoole, who has written books on household efficiency, offers this simple tip for the kitchen: Wash off an item before placing it back in a fridge or cupboard.

Taking a few seconds now can save hours down the road.

And therein lies my problem — I am a dasher.

I am always trying to do 10 things at once, multitasking if you will.

I wear shoes or slippers constantly, otherwise I stub or break my toes because I'm focused not on where I'm walking but where I am dashing.

I dash to the bedroom, forgetting items I should have been carried there, or I leave the papers I need for my computer work in the kitchen instead of taking a few seconds to gather my wits before dashing off wherever my mind takes me.

This is why an article in USA Today caught my eye.

The piece, by Marco R. della Cava, was about Internet sites and businesses that have evolved to help us in our harried lives.

In the article, Tim Ferriss, author of the best-selling book "The 4-Hour Workweek," says, "I find that for most people, a sped-up life leads to feelings of guilt and anxiety instead of productivity and relaxation. Unending acceleration isn't scalable, whether as a lifestyle or as a business model."

Through the years, I have watched my husband make meticulous lists.

When we go on vacation, he pulls out his checklist and systematically goes to work, making sure all is taken care of. If I make a list, I lose it.

Besides, a list just doesn't quite do it for me. I like to visualize what we will be doing and what I want to be wearing when I do it.

But that's no excuse.

Face it. I really do self-destruct and feel more anxious than I should when a simple, well-thought-out checklist would suffice.

Ferriss also said people get confused because we think just because we are busy that we are also productive.

That is why goal-setting individuals like Stephen Covey have been so successful.

They write down goals and really think about what they are doing. They make mission statements instead of letting their lives run amok.

Covey's book, "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People," has been purchased by 15 million people, including myself.

While it didn't change me, it did make me more aware.

In Cava's story in USA Today, he also quotes Indiana University psychology professor Richard Shiffrin, who gets to the nub by saying, "The bottleneck in this sped-up system is our minds.

The cost of acceleration, if we try and keep up, is that our responses to things move from reflective to reactive. In essence, you're faced then with a choice between doing more things but sloppily, or fewer things well."

You can see that I am trying, but in the meantime why not rely on a husband with lists?

Oh, and he, of course, does the bills.