I'm sure we are all feeling the strain of a hectic lifestyle with full schedules, family obligations and much more, but what effect do these busy days have on our mental health?

According to a poll of 2,000 adults commissioned by Avery Office and Consumer Products, over half of them say that trying to do too many things in the course of a typical day is causing them to forget several small, but important, tasks. 

forgetting simple things is one of the unfortunate side effects of modern life.  On the bright side, if it's true, most of us will immediately forget it.

Here are the top 10 things we forget each day.

  • 1

    To return phone calls

    Returning calls seems to get pushed to the bottom of our long lists of things to do, but that's why they invented text messaging right?

    flickr user runs with scissors
    flickr user runs with scissors
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  • 2

    To reply to emails


    Email in-boxes seem to fill up pretty quick these days (3,648 - that's what's in my inbox right now!) and more often then not the emails that require a reply get lost in the shuffle.

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  • 3

    People's names

    Some people can remember a new acquaintance's name right off the bat, but most will have to say that name over and over again in their head to remember it - if they even paid attention to what it was in the first place.

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  • 4

    Sending birthday cards


    Now this one is annoying. You have to go to the store, spend an hour picking out a card, write something clever in it, address and stamp it, and finally put it in the mail. No wonder this is near the top of the list.

    No worries though, just make sure you write 'Happy Birthday' on their Facebook wall and you should be good to go!

    flickr user bradleypjohnson
    flickr user bradleypjohnson
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  • 5

    Charging our phones

    If only there was a way to spontaneously charge these things while in use this would not be a problem - because most of the time we don't put them down long enough to charge them anyway.

    flickr user brendan-c
    flickr user brendan-c
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  • 6

    Passwords to different websites

    Your bank account, email, social sites, work accounts, your best friends blog dedicated to her chihuahua...the list goes on. With so many different websites each with their own login credentials, it's a wonder how we remember any of them at all. Luckily most internet browsers give you the option to save passwords to websites that you visit, but be careful with this feature - your saved password may not be as safe as you think.

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  • 7

    Taking meat out of the freezer to defrost it

    And when we do remember to take it out of the freezer, where do we find the time to cook it?

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  • 8

    Watering the plants


    As long as you remember to feed and water you kids you're doing OK. Here, try one of these.

    flickr user arthaey
    flickr user arthaey
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  • 9

    Grabbing print-outs from the printer

    You would think that if it was important enough to print out then it would be important enough to remember to grab it from the printer. But if your printer is in the other room then forgetting to do this is easier then one might think.

    flickr user tstadler
    flickr user tstadler
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  • 10

    Taking out the garbage

    Forgetting to put the garbage out on the curb for the garbage truck to pick up is a big DOH! Especially if it's full and and the next trash pick-up day is not for another four days.

    flickr user quosquos
    flickr user quosquos
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