My best friend is the most disciplined person I know.
He sits down early in the morning to work on his programming, and gets up once or twice throughout the day to eat, go to the bathroom, or call a friend. Otherwise he works. He has a freakishly-long attention span. I love and admire him immensely.
I also hate him for it.
I am nothing like him. For most of my life I've considered myself a chronic procrastinator. I will do anything to avoid getting started - even when the project is something I actually enjoy doing.
I clean my room, read a book, mindlessly scroll Facebook. What's underneath it is a fear that I'll probably fuck up.
So I distract myself from the uncomfortable thoughts. I know this about myself, so I plan accordingly.
When it's time to start the task, I pull all the stops. Cell phone on airplane mode, social media blockers activated, door closed. Then I set a timer. Twenty minutes. A songwriting professor once told me we can withstand ANY boring task for 20 minutes. I believe him.
After the 20 minutes is up, I get a reward. The reward is often something small, positive and silly, like listening to a podcast I love or text-flirting. Funny thing is, by the time the timer goes off, I'm often so deep in the flow of my work that I reset my timer, putting off my break for another 15-20.
I procrastinate procrastination.
I know my weaknesses: short attention and self-defeating thoughts. I could sit around all damn day and beat myself up about them (and trust me, I have). Instead, I've learned to use this information to my advantage.
I optimize my environment for productivity, and give myself the best chance possible to get my work done.
He sits down early in the morning to work on his programming, and gets up once or twice throughout the day to eat, go to the bathroom, or call a friend. Otherwise he works. He has a freakishly-long attention span. I love and admire him immensely.
I also hate him for it.
I am nothing like him. For most of my life I've considered myself a chronic procrastinator. I will do anything to avoid getting started - even when the project is something I actually enjoy doing.
I clean my room, read a book, mindlessly scroll Facebook. What's underneath it is a fear that I'll probably fuck up.
So I distract myself from the uncomfortable thoughts. I know this about myself, so I plan accordingly.
When it's time to start the task, I pull all the stops. Cell phone on airplane mode, social media blockers activated, door closed. Then I set a timer. Twenty minutes. A songwriting professor once told me we can withstand ANY boring task for 20 minutes. I believe him.
After the 20 minutes is up, I get a reward. The reward is often something small, positive and silly, like listening to a podcast I love or text-flirting. Funny thing is, by the time the timer goes off, I'm often so deep in the flow of my work that I reset my timer, putting off my break for another 15-20.
I procrastinate procrastination.
I know my weaknesses: short attention and self-defeating thoughts. I could sit around all damn day and beat myself up about them (and trust me, I have). Instead, I've learned to use this information to my advantage.
I optimize my environment for productivity, and give myself the best chance possible to get my work done.
