Comment by souvlakee
2 days ago
> serial procrastinators ride a particular high when they change their methods, especially if they spend money... It never lasts long, we return to baseline quite fast
That's probably why the author has beginner tasks on the whiteboard like making a bed, washing the dishes, etc. It's hard to imagine having such tasks throughout one's entire life while struggling with procrastination.
Yes, that is exactly why this method works. Because breaking tasks down into micro-tasks really does work. And the ticket printer helps remove as much friction as possible.
That is what makes it a method that requires very little time and energy, and therefore something that can be sustained over the long term.
That matches my experience. “Write the report” will sit in my inbox forever. “Add 10 items to the outline for the report” will usually break the inertia and end up with me finishing the whole thing.
Then if "Add 10 items" seems to be sitting around for a while, I change it to "Add 5 items".
The part where I end up finishing the whole thing doesn't always happen, but breaking it down into chunks that I can power my way through even if I'm in the worst mood with the worst working conditions at least lets me accomplish a small thing and get a better sense of the task for the next time I try. Sometimes "Add 5 Items" actually turns into "Add 2 items and realize you only need 7 total items."
Some of my procrastination is "I haven't started the task because I can't completely visualize it, I can't completely visualize it because I haven't started the task."
You should try harder, I can easily keep “Add 10 items to the outline for the report” or even "Add 1 item" tasks in my inbox forever.
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