fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #2640 ]

[ SECRET POST #2640 ]

⌈ Secret Post #2640 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 031 secrets from Secret Submission Post #377.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

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Basically, I have this issue where if I have too many things to do in a day, my mind blocks up and instead of trying to do as many as I can efficiently, I just get paralyzed, procrastinate and do none of them. I have times where I deal with this better than others, but since I'm not in such a great phase in my life, the effect is only worse.

I just feel stress but can't bring myself to do the thing that would ease the stress (aka get shit done).

I write lists with the amount of time I need to complete each task, then I just make a schedule based around that.

~~did I explain that well enough?~~

That...is kind of brilliant. I never think to add times to lists.

I tend to make lists in semi-public online, where other people can see them. DW, Facebook, etc.... and then I can cross things off as I finish them. If I don't finish things, then everyone will know I'm not getting anything done - and I don't want them to see me as a huge failure, so I pick something and start on it, then edit to cross it off when it's done. And since I'm already looking at the list to cross it off, it's easy enough to go "Okay, which of these will I do next?"

Before I know it, I'm so caught up in trying to cross off as many things as possible that I'm doing the exact opposite of procrastinating and staying up too late and neglecting my health and so on in order to try to get as many things done as I can.

This may or may not work for other people depending on particular hangups and insecurities, granted.

Make lists. That's what I do. So, even if you aren't able to do everything in one day you can look at your list and think, "Hey, look at all the stuff I WAS ABLE to do." You will feel better about yourself. I promise.

I don't know that my method will work for you because of my situation: I live with three other people in a house. We all have different things we're responsible for as far as chores to make it all run smoothly.

I am huge procrastinator and what always motivates me is knowing that my roommates will be either mad or disappointed if I don't do my share. Today, for example, I wanted to just sleep all day. But I dragged myself out of bed, ate breakfast, emptied the dishwasher, put the few dirty dishes in, dusted, did four loads of laundry and I'll probably make dinner.

Plus, there's an awesome feeling of accomplishment when my part is done.

I take a break and cook something. Something small, easy, but enough to distract me for a bit. I find cooking really soothing and satisfying and you get something tasty in return. It may not help with procrastination, but I find it helps with stress.

I write down all the tasks, underline anything that seems "too big" in red (making the task "break this down into smaller tasks later) and then apply a time management system: Start at the top. Mark the first task on the list. Move down the list and mark any task you need/want to do before the last one you marked. Work through your marked tasks bottom to top. If you get interrupted, once the interruption is done, write down what it was and cross it out (unless it was unproductive), then renew the markings starting at the top. Cross out anything you worked on and re-enter it at the bottom if it didn't get done.

On really bad days, this list gets really long because tasks need to be really tiny before I can tackle them - but this is how I manage to do a full time brain job despite my depression.

I deal with this exact issue. I wish I had a fix-all but I don't.

The thing that always helps me the most is...stop thinking about everything. It's hard. It's really fucking hard. But think about one thing, one thing, that needs to be done, and then think about what you're going to do when you finish it - eat something, watch a show, take a nap, whatever. Then just focus on that one thing. I always wind up afraid that I'll lose track of things, or I'll be stuck working forever and never get a break, or whatever, but that shit that still has to be done? it won't go away, you'll just have one thing already done when you start the next.

...but this entire comment - I could have written it, especially a couple years ago. Seriously, this just sounds exactly like where I was and it sucks so hard and I feel for you. If you want to vent/talk about it, feel free to PM me.

ETA: er: if you want to PM me, comment on this so I know to look for it, because I'm not really checking my inbox since DW screwed up notifications xD;

Edited 2014-03-27 02:55 (UTC)

Hey, I feel asleep while people were replying - but if the offer still stands, I wouldn't mind a chat.

I'll send you a PM tonight after secrets come up, that ok?

I make a list first: just so I have everything down in one place and am not periodically through the day fluttering in a panic as I remember THIS OTHER THING...!

Then I just pick someplace and start. The key for me is not to be too locked in to completing it in a strictly regimented fashion; like if I'm getting burned out on a task, I take a minute and switch to another task until I get tired of that one. Laundry works well for me this way, because it has stages so you can use it to break up other tasks.

I take one of my assignments and go to a coffee shop. Then I take another and go to the library. If it's nice day (and anytime after April), I take another and go sit in the park, or on the beach. And it's not just school stuff, but looking for jobs, getting emails read/responded to/sent for all my various groups.

Then I take a day -- a single day -- to myself, and just treat myself like a king. If there's food I've been craving, I go get it; I hang out on the beach with a good book and/or music; go to the aquarium and draw eyes. Things that make me feel good.

Good luck, hon.

I use lists, a combination of a to-do list app and a little white-board I write stuff on and leave on my desk on top of my laptop so I don't have a choice but to see it. I'll explain how I do it so that the tips I actually give make sense:

Basically, the To-Do list app I use for organizing things I have to do, scheduling thing (this organizes tasks by date as well as list/category, and then you can set alerts for specific times). This makes it easier to prioritize and organize, because then I can see that I have too many tasks for one day and not all of them are urgent/time-sensitive/essential, so it's easy for me to just change the date and push them to tomorrow or the day after. This is where I would put something like "clean room" and "study chapter 1". Once I'm done with a task, I check it off as completed (it stays on the list until I Clear All Completed, but now it's grayed out - so I get the satisfaction of seeing how much I have done and accomplished/finished).

Then, once I have that done, I use a white board and dry-erase marker to break down the tasks for what I have to do "today". Using the above examples, I would do something like "clear closet", "clean under bed", "organize paperwork", and "vacuum the floor" for cleaning my room. Then for studying, I would so something "do chapter 1.1", "do chapter 1.2", "do chapter 1.3" ('do' = read and take notes so I never have to read it again), then "answer review questions", or whatever I need to do.

I start going through those sub-tasks/mini-tasks, and once I finish something, I reward myself some how - read a chapter of a fanfic, have some coffee or candy, take a brief nap, listen to some music, etc. Also, as I finish them, I wipe it off the board - which means soon there is very little left on the board, which makes it less overwhelming, and once everything is done for the day or given time frame, I can relax because I have nothing left on the board - even if I know that tomorrow I'm starting all over again because I still have things on my To-Do list app, for tonight, I'm done.

So in short, I would suggest you keep two 'systems' of telling yourself what to do - one for planning what you have to get done and when, the other being more about how you will get it done when you have to do it. I use the to-do list app to plan when I will get things done, but then I use the whiteboard for actually finishing them because it's easier to 'see' an end goal of clearing it out and thus being finished for the day. I get to focus on only what I need to achieve right now, without forgetting about what I will have to do next.

It doesn't have to be an app and whiteboard - before, I used to use hand-written to-do lists for the broader things, then use index cards for the sub-tasks. Once I had everything crossed off, I could throw it away and be one with it. This actually had an advantage at the time in that I could create index cards for days in advance, whereas I only have one locker-sized whiteboard. You can try keeping two planners, a weekly/monthly planner and a daily planner, using the weekly/monthly to organize tasks and then the daily to actually do them. Or instead of daily planner, you can use post-it notes, writing down the sub-tasks and putting them on the wall so you can't avoid them so easily, then throwing them away once you're done.

tl;dr - find a way that lets you narrow in and focus on what you have to do 'today'/specific time frame, without letting you forget or lose focus of 'tomorrow'/down the road. :)

I'm like you, having lots to do just paralyses me. I'm joining the "write a list!" chorus, but I break down allll (literally all, even the everyday life things) the things that need to get done on a given day into tiny jobs, and write them down in a list. I really need the encouragement of crossing a whole lot of things off my list and I include all the basic mundane daily tasks in said list. Like, the beginning of my to do list on a busy day will be something like:

-Wake up
-Get out of bed
-Make breakfast
-Eat breakfast
-Brush teeth
-Have shower
-Get dressed
etc etc

So when I cross off those things I feel like a have productivity momentum going, even though I've not done any of the looming major jobs. But the momentum means I'm more likely to actually do the major jobs. It's all about tricking my brain into thinking I'm already being productive, so I ay as well keep going. Break the real jobs down into ridiculously small pieces too, so you keep getting the "YES I AM CROSSING THINGS OFF I AM A PRODUCTIVITY SUPERSTAR" feeling. You can end up with a giant mega to do list when you break it all down like this, but each successive individual task is non-intimidating, which I personally really need.

tl;dr I trick myself into thinking I am productive, which in turn can make me actually be productive.

(This may not work for you, but I love it. This method has saved my butt on many occasions.)

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[ SECRET POST #2640 ]

F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?

Re: F!S, do you have strategies to break procrastination cycles and negative stress?