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Sarah here. We hope that you enjoyed last week’s blog about tackling daunting tasks. This week, we’re talking about something else that can interfere with us getting stuff done. Less than ideal conditions can derail even the best of intentions. Picture it: you’ve carved out time in your schedule to go to the gym, you’re in your car, and you realize you left your headphones at home. What do you do? If you’re like a lot of people, you’d probably hesitate…after all, you’d planned on listen to music, a podcast, audiobook, or TV show while working out or running. Now it won’t be the same. Maybe it even seems like you should just turn around and go home…after all, you don’t have your headphones, things aren’t going the way they’re supposed to…you could always run or workout another day this week, right? See how easily those less-than-ideal conditions can derail the best laid plans? In real life, we often have less-than-ideal conditions when we set out to do things that matter to us. We may forget something we need, the weather may be bad, we may feel sick, or something else could go wrong. But here’s the hard truth: we can still choose to do the things that matter to us, even when the conditions aren’t favorable. Does that mean that your trip to the gym without your headphones will result in the best workout or run ever? Probably not. In fact, you may spend the whole time thinking about what you could’ve been listening to, lamenting about how this gym day is crummy, or being frustrated with yourself for forgetting the darned headphones. But the point is that when something matters to you, you can commit to doing it even in less-than-ideal conditions.
It’s also okay if less-than-ideal conditions result in less-than-ideal progress. Sometimes just showing up and putting in effort is a win. So next time you’re faced with less-than-ideal conditions, be sure to show up for yourself. Acknowledge the feelings and thoughts that you have. And commit to doing the thing you care about. Give yourself some grace and know that progress, no matter how small, is still progress.
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Lisa here. I hope you enjoyed last week’s blog about task initiation. Today we’re doing a deeper dive on something that often makes task initiation difficult- overwhelm. Do some tasks feel too daunting or overwhelming to even start? This is a common reason for procrastination and for deciding not to do a task at all. So, what do you do when faced with a daunting task? It may sound obvious, but breaking a big, overwhelming task into smaller, more doable chunks is key. I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but it’s often unclear how to go about this. If you break the task into too many steps, you may feel discouraged and like you’re not making progress. Too few steps and you still feel overwhelmed. Here are some tips you can use to break down tasks into small, specific goals no matter what kind of task you’re facing, whether it’s a project at work or a household chore:
Using the strategies I’ve just described has another benefit. Focusing on completing small steps shifts your view from completion of the ultimate goal as the only metric of success. Instead, you can appreciate your progress and experience small victories along the way. When you view your progress as success, you build momentum to keep going until the task is complete. Again, this works for big projects and mundane, everyday chores.
This strategy is also a great one to model for and teach your kids. Not only will they learn to appreciate the journey as well as the destination, they will also learn some important skills. They’ll learn how to plan and organize their approach to a task, how to initiate and complete a task, and how to problem-solve and make adjustments when things do not go according to their original plan. That’s some excellent executive functioning skills training! Sarah here. We hope that you enjoyed last week’s blog about emphasizing progress over perfection. This week, we’re talking about something many people can relate to- the struggle to just get started on a task. Often, when we need to do something, the biggest hurdle we face is getting started. Problems with task initiation can appear when we care about a goal, when we’re facing a large project, and/or when it’s something very important to us. But this isn’t always the case. In fact, we often struggle to get started because we don’t care about a task, don’t see the value in a project, and/or are dreading it. Difficulties with task initiation aren’t always about intentional procrastination. Sure, sometimes we deliberately put off doing something. But other times, we just may not know how to get started. Some tasks can be overwhelming, which makes it hard to know where to begin. We may also doubt whether we’ll be able to finish or accomplish something, which may prevent us from starting. So, what can you do when you’re having a hard time with task initiation? If you’re facing a large project and you’re not sure where to start, it may be useful to map things out. Break down the project into doable steps that can be accomplished relatively quickly. This reduces overwhelm and gives you a sense of momentum. Just remember that in order to make sub-tasks easily attainable, you will likely have a relatively long To Do list for your project.
If you’re focused on how difficult it will be to get from start to finish, remind yourself that progress is progress- no matter how small. Focus on the step you’re on rather than on the eventual goal. If you keep taking small steps, eventually you will get where you’re going. Tying into last week’s blog, reinforce yourself for your effort, rather than the outcome. That will give you a boost to keep going. When you appreciate how difficult getting started can be, it may be a bit easier to feel self-compassion when you notice yourself stalling. And remember that passing that initial roadblock—just getting started—can be a huge relief. So be sure to celebrate when you set things in motion, even if you still have more to do. |
Welcome!Feel free to peruse our blog and see what Sarah and Lisa had to say about topics related to your needs as a busy parent. We will talk about everything from parenting values, to life hacks, to realistic self-care. Archives
August 2023
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