GTD Anti-Procrastination Workshop thread [!ANTIAVOIDANCE]

[bmd]

Anti-Procrastination thread

Things I'm stuck on? There isn't enough RAM in the world to hold them...But I HAD to thank you, Cosmo, for a big, therapeutic belly laugh on a morning when I surely needed one. The "list of ways to make better lists" made me laugh out loud.

Everything else you related was - always has been - exceptionally helpful.

As for the Christmas video issue: I fall into a black hole in the late afternoon, with the transition from work to home. I have an extremely low-pressure, flexible, parttime job, and I have (don't ask me how - I'm in awe of them) three easygoing, fun teenagers. So it's not as if I'm segueing from frying pan to fire. (OK, Child # 4, aka "spouse," is not as easygoing...) Like other Forumites, I am on top of things at the office but home is chaos. And by 5:00, even on a "good day," when I'm looking at the NA's in the household contexts, the voice in my head says, "Why bother?" "It's too late" Stuff like that. Don't know if that's why your video project keeps falling off. Because your time at home is endlessly negotiable?

 

[CosmoGTD]

Hi Carol, great example. I am pressed for time right now, and will respond later, but I had to say this.
My brother is a professional camerman, and he made a bunch of high-quality video of a bunch of family stuff, and he was going to edit it up nice, make a nice video, add music, and burn us all a DVD, etc,

That was in the summer of 2000.
So everytime I talk to him, I still say, HOW'S THE VIDEO COMING ALONG?

However the project "Christmas Video" just isn't moving. I have even broken the N/A's down as far as get firewire lead out of camera bag; Install movie software onto laptop; find CD for movie software etc. but it isn't getting done.

I think partly it is because other things are more urgent and important when I look at my N/A list and need doing asap whereas there isn't really a hard and fast deadline for the video CD's.

 

[Mindi]

don't know if this will help, but it works for me sometimes.

Hi Carol,

I have two things that help me when trying to get something done that is stuck. The first is to break the next action down to a ridiculous level, i.e. 'walk into bedroom to get camera bag'. This has worked for me in projects that I am highly committed to but for some reason I'm not excited to do (for me anything routine takes a lot of effort). I usually follow creating the next action by questioning "Is there any reason I can't do that right now?" The answer is usually no, and so I can get the ball rolling on the project.
The second thing is to schedule some time for that particular project on my calendar. I only use this in desperate times, otherwise I learn to ignore those types of appointments. Goal setting at the beginning of the session (asking myself "What do I need to accomplish to feel like I've made progress on this project?") helps me focus on not feeling like a failure if I don't get the whole thing done in one sitting.
I can use these two methods to take care of approximately 50% of the next actions I have that are on my list for more than two weeks. Still trying to work out how to get the other 50% done.

Mindi

You asked for projects that just aren't getting done. I have one.

At Christmas I took the video camera to a family reunion and took some pics of the present opening and my cousins engagement party on Christmas Eve. I promised to make CD's for various family members.

However the project "Christmas Video" just isn't moving. I have even broken the N/A's down as far as get firewire lead out of camera bag; Install movie software onto laptop; find CD for movie software etc. but it isn't getting done.

I think partly it is because other things are more urgent and important when I look at my N/A list and need doing asap whereas there isn't really a hard and fast deadline for the video CD's.

Any ideas welcome!

Regards,

Carol

 

[flexiblefine]

A little successful pushing

So it is true that modifying how a NA is worded can help to get the NA into motion. Sometimes it does draw you forward.
But in my view, oftentimes it does not. The reason for this is that we still "interpret" the NA in our mind. So even if it is worded well, we can still think, "Oh God, I don't want to do that crud", and thus avoid it.

I think I have a lot of that problem -- doing the very next action isn't so bad, but three or four actions down the road, there's something I feel anxious about. So things don't get done...

Last Friday, as part of my weekly review, I made a new "Push" context list and moved several items into it. Some of those items are for high-priority projects, but others are little things that just haven't been moving.

This morning, I started working from the top of my "Push" list, and now it's a little more than halfway done. I won't get it finished today, because there's too much left to do, but it's a good start. Even if I just make a Push list weekly and work it like this, it will be a great help to me.

One of today's Push items was an e-mail I'd been meaning to write since November, at least. This is an e-mail to ask questions about a software product -- not something I'm very emotional about, but I am anxious about trying to convince my company to buy the software.

For four months, I've procrastinated on this e-mail -- and I wrote it (and sent it) in 15 minutes this morning. All because it was on the Push list, and I pushed myself.

I think the Push list has just become a permanent part of my GTD setup, ready to be used whenever it's needed. I'll use it regularly for a little while, because too many things have been sitting for too long. This is finally a way for me to learn how to put things on my lists and get them dispatched before they get too old.

 

[CosmoGTD]

However the project "Christmas Video" just isn't moving. I have even broken the N/A's down as far as get firewire lead out of camera bag; Install movie software onto laptop; find CD for movie software etc. but it isn't getting done.

I think partly it is because other things are more urgent and important when I look at my N/A list and need doing asap whereas there isn't really a hard and fast deadline for the video CD's.

ok, here is my 2 cents on this.
I would agree that likely the reason for this, is that it is easy for that to get pushed aside, as its not urgent and has no deadline.

Something else could also be, that often we THINK a task is going to be "easy" but our brain knows darn well that it ain't gonna be so easy! I don't know if you have made video CD's before, but if you haven't, installing the software, capturing the video, editing it, burning it, can be a lot more hassle than one thinks.
When you do the Project, maybe keep track of how long it actually takes, as opposed to how long you think it will take. I find sometimes these things can take 3-4 times longer that we think, and be more frustrating, so our brain tries to avoid whatever it can. (all species avoid unnecessary work, to save energy, and humans are no different).

This is what I would suggest.
First, decide WHEN you want it done by. Create your own deadline. If you don't care if its done for a year, then fine! You escaped. But if you want it done in a few weeks, then set an appointment on your calendar.
I would put aside maybe 1 hour to start, and this would be installing the software, etc, and then see how it goes.

But here is where the rubber meets the road. I personally know of no other way to get yourself to start on this on the date you set, other than literally turning off the phone, closing the door, and going for it.
Best case scenario is that you get started on it, and then schedule a few follow up appointments to finish it. (making videos ain't as easy as they say!)

But what if something happens, and you don't start?
The best solution I know of is this. Decide to sit in front of that computer for at least the one hour you have committed. Even if you are just holding the cable and fuming! I am serious. Its a type of Time Out for us adults.
Also, what you can do, is if you are sitting in front of the computer, and you "feel like" taking a call, or doing something to ESCAPE, then you can JOURNAL what you are thinking and feeling.
There is something in CBT called a "Thought Record" which is amazing for this, but entire books have been written on that, like Mind Over Mood, which is an A+ book.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0898621283/102-9353852-7829716?v=glance&n=283155

But you could get the camera, CD's etc, and just sit there with them, and then WRITE OUT the 'thoughts that are going through your mind". They could be anything, like, "I don't have time for this, why did I say I would do this, this is too complex, I hate this process".
Then you can Dispute those thoughts. (see Mind Over Mood)

But the bottom line is going to come, from "pushing" the Behavior, in my view.
No matter how you feel, just plug the camera in, and do it one step at a time.

I know with me, I have had computer type stuff I PUT OFF for a long time, and EVERYTIME I pushed myself to finally do it, it ended up taking HOURS, and was very frustrating. So my brain was trying to "save me" from the hassle of unnecessary work.

So what I would do is set a precise appointment, turn off the phone, and then PUSH myself to do it. If my brain keeps resisting, I would write out the thoughts going through my mind, and then Dispute them, and keep pushing the behavior. I would even write the thoughts up here on the forum, as it helps. That is why I am writing all this stuff out!!

I just got a digi-cam myself, and let me tell you, editing video is not so easy, to get a finished product. I have spent many hours so far, and am still getting started. So I bet your brain knows this on some level, and knows its going to take much longer than you think. (they lie on those TV commercials, ya know).

Again, I don't know of any method other than what I've said.

Why not give it a try, and let us know how it goes?
If it doesn't happen, then let us know how it 'not happening', happened.

 

[CosmoGTD]

For four months, I've procrastinated on this e-mail -- and I wrote it (and sent it) in 15 minutes this morning. All because it was on the Push list, and I pushed myself.

I think the Push list has just become a permanent part of my GTD setup, ready to be used whenever it's needed. I'll use it regularly for a little while, because too many things have been sitting for too long. This is finally a way for me to learn how to put things on my lists and get them dispatched before they get too old.

Wow, thanks a lot for this, this is very inspirational to me. You have made an excellent point here about having a PUSH list.
I have used the term "force" from REBT, but the problem is that can be misinterpreted, as its really meant to be more like a strong, vigorous push. So push, is a better term for generic usage. The thing to remember, is sometimes it takes an extremely STRONG push, to get us moving. This is why they used the term "force", as sometimes, you really have to push through stuff, that is, for some people with serious problems in this area.
Also, ANTIAVOIDANCE, is another technical term which I like, but it is "static", and is a double-negative.
So I am going to put a few things together.
Dr. Albert Ellis of REBT calls this PYA, for Push Your Ass. He says it like that for effect, and because sometimes it really takes something that vigorous.
So I am going to add PYA, to the Antiavoidance somehow. !PYA-Antiavoidance, perhaps.

Your point about the NA's 3 or 4 away is correct. Our brain is very intelligent, and can look around corners, and we can see it does all sorts of tricky stuff like this, if we look closely.

As for the email, yes it could be some anxiety, or something like that.
Using CBT, (see Mind Over Mood)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0898621283/102-9353852-7829716?v=glance&n=283155

we can literally pinpoint the "automatic thoughts" which go through our minds, which usually are causing us to avoid doing things. This can be very helpful.

But the cool thing is, we don't even HAVE to know the reasons most of the time. Most of the time there is no logical reason, just the brain trying to "play it safe" as we have a stone-age brain, in a techno world.
So we can just choose to override that primitive program that says "don't do it", and just push through it, without even knowing what was blocking us. Most of the time, we are not even going to know what is blocking us, as its not rational anyway.
Of course, SOMETIMES it is rational, and that is what makes it challenging.

Another idea, might also be to come up with an acronym, and figure out some words to use for P.U.S.H, or something like that. That might be fun.
That's why I like PYA. When I see it, I laugh, and I can hear old Albert Ellis screaming, PUSH YOUR ASS!!! PUSH YOUR ASS!!
It sounds stupid, but Dr. Albert Ellis is a genius, as he understands humans can be very simple, and emotive beings, and that "logic" does not always work.
You could call it, PYF, Push Your Fingers, or Push Your Legs, but its not as funny or effective. Sometimes we get too fancy, and complicated, when the solution is very basic and primal.
Often times we just need a little old fashioned PYA, and the behavior can start moving. After all, if a lion starting coming after us, no human would have a procrastination problem to get away.
Many times we need that Behavioral movement from the bottom up, just pushing the physical behavior.

Please keep us posted on your progress, and how it evolves, and when it works, and when it doesn't work.

I have thought about this process for a very long time, and I really do think that where the rubber hits the road, is the point of power for the entire system, and literally for our entire lives. Its the moment of DOING the current Next Actions, that literally makes everything happen in our lives.

We Get GTD Done with PYA.

 

[legidan]

Hi there, I think this also points to some Social Anxiety.
If its something you have struggled for years with, you might consider getting some treatment for it, perhaps. I hate to sound like a broken record, but something like Cognitive-Behavior Therapy might work wonders. (avoid other types of therapy for this type of thing, as it will most likely make it much worse).

Cosmo,

Are you a therapist? Because you're busy making knee-jerk diagnosis on a on-line bulletin board (something a trained therapist would never do) and telling people to "avoid other types of therapy" when study after study shows that relationship (therapist/client), not modality, is the strongest predictor of successful outcome i.e. reduced symptom.

 

[TesTeq]

Do not force yourself.

However the project "Christmas Video" just isn't moving. I have even broken the N/A's down as far as get firewire lead out of camera bag; Install movie software onto laptop; find CD for movie software etc. but it isn't getting done.
...
Any ideas welcome!

Apparently it is not very important and interesting for you. It is just a promise you made. Maybe you are the only person who still remebers about it? So - renegotiate, make a backup of the pictures and put it in the safe place.

Put "Christmas Video" project on your Someday/Maybe - and you're done with it. That's the place where it belongs.

 

[CosmoGTD]

No I am not a "therapist", and I obviously am not making a knee-jerk diagnosis of any kind, just simply making speculative comments and general brainstorming. I think everyone understands that, as this is not about therapy. This thread is about trying to deal with procrastination that occurs when using GTD. I happen to know quite a bit about GTD, but I also have troubles with aspects of GTD, and am trying to make it work more effectively.

The therapist/client relationship is very important, and this is recognized in CBT, but its not going to help much with basic procrastination, unless specific behavioral goals are set, and followed up on. Doing "talk therapy", in my experience, is literally going to make procrastination MUCH MUCH worse, as sitting there yacking is not going to help with procrastination in most cases. If anything, it can make people more anxious, confused, and troubled, trying to "understand" things, that perhaps cannot really be understood.

The CBT types of therapy, and behavior therapy work the best to deal with procrastination, in my experience.
Social Anxiety is highly treatable using behavioral exposure techniques.

There was an entire overheated thread about this whole argument a while ago, where a psychoanalyst was giving his contrary viewpoint. That's a good battleground thread for the war of the therapies.
http://www.davidco.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4357

I know certain psychoanalytic therapists despise the cognitive-behavioral approach, but all I care about is what works. Also, here is a test to evaluate a therapist. I don't agree with much of what is on that website, but this therapist test is from someone else, and is just posted there, and is quite good, and will drive psycholanalysts apoplectic as a free bonus.
http://www.stopbadtherapy.com/test/therapy.shtml

But if a person wants to go to psychoanalytic or general talk therapy to try to deal with procrastination, then I personally would advise strongly against it, but of course, anyone can do whatever they want, and feel free to disagree. Its just regular folks here sharing their ideas, experiences and opinions.

Social Anxiety is not some big deep dark secret that takes years of psychoanalytic therapy. Often just pushing yourself to go to more social events, and practicing social skills works terrific. I have some Social Anxiety myself in very specific contexts, and the most effective way to deal with this, is also behavioral exposure, as well as some cognitive restructuring, in my experience. Social Anxiety nothing to be ashamed of.

And procrastination is not some deep dark secret about how you were toilet trained, or whatever. Often you can get amazing results by just doing some of the things being talked about and explored in this thread.

Again, each person is unique, and personally I am getting excellent value from some of the things being said in this thread.

Cosmo,

Are you a therapist? Because you're busy making knee-jerk diagnosis on a on-line bulletin board (something a trained therapist would never do) and telling people to "avoid other types of therapy" when study after study shows that relationship (therapist/client), not modality, is the strongest predictor of successful outcome i.e. reduced symptom.

 

[CosmoGTD]

I agree that if a person decides they don't want to do something, then they should NOT do it, and put it on Someday/Maybe, or delete it.
Or they can hire someone and delegate it, if they want it done, but don't want to do it.

My point is that for some of us, (not all of us), even IF we decide we really want to do it, we still don't do it. Again, each person is different and some people don't seem to have this problem, whereas some other people are plagued with that problem. I don't know why that is.
What I am saying, is that for those of us who have this problem, PUSHING yourself to do it, in the right way, might be the only way to go.
Not saying it IS the only way to go, it might not be something some folks want to do. Its worth trying.
But there are many folks, who can perfectly language their Next Action, and have everything lined up, and it still does NOT get done.

One day I will talk with DA about this, and see what he has to say.
I am just putting the idea out there that IF you are doing GTD correctly, and its still not getting done, then don't blame yourself, or beat your head against the wall, or give up. There are ways to get it moving.
The fact is that certain people seem to need that PUSH to get things moving. Many of the top cognitive-behavioral psychologists have done enormous work and research into this. So for those of you who have this challenge, there is a way out. To be honest, if a person has some type of semi-serious psychological "issue" with a Next Action, I personally believe that GTD does not give the tools to deal with it effectively, at least for me.

But that one simple technique of giving yourself a behavioral push, can change certain people's lives. Its definitely worth trying as an experiment, and seeing how it works. One a person experiences how it works, and how once they get STARTED then everything can start flowing, then it can be very helpful.
Unfortunately, there are some folks who can get stuck in a morass of not getting things done, and this simple behavioral technique of pushing themselves to do it, can literally change their lives.

I am very grateful for the scientists and practitioners who have spent so many decades figuring this type of stuff out, and then sharing it with the public in a way that's usable.
Behavioral Exposure along a scheduled graded hierarchy works wonders for many people, and that process does take some internal pushing to make it happen. (but too much can backfire). Its laid out very specifically, and has been researched extremely carefully, and is explained in some good books for the public.
It also fits perfectly with GTD, at least for me.

Apparently it is not very important and interesting for you. It is just a promise you made. Maybe you are the only person who still remebers about it? So - renegotiate, make a backup of the pictures and put it in the safe place.

Put "Christmas Video" project on your Someday/Maybe - and you're done with it. That's the place where it belongs.

 

[ActionGirl]

Its just regular folks here sharing their ideas, experiences and opinions.
. . .
Again, each person is unique, and personally I am getting excellent value from some of the things being said in this thread.

Me too.

I've found that identifying the very next physical action (such as getting the video camera, etc) isn't all that helpful because I know darn well I do NOT want to act on the following steps (especially if they involve software, yuck).

I also hesitate to schedule an exact appointment with myself because it's practically a dare to break it. (Take that, self!)

Strangely, I think perhaps I can commit to getting the materials ready if all I have to commit to in advance is to sit with the project for an hour. Seems worth a try, anyway.

 

[legidan]

The CBT types of therapy, and behavior therapy work the best to deal with procrastination, in my experience.
Social Anxiety is highly treatable using behavioral exposure techniques.

Perhaps I'm being overly sensitive, but the tone of your posts sounded diagnostic and clearly partisan. If you were a therapist, I would wonder where all the projected angst visavis alternatives to CBT was coming from. Most therapists I know see benefits in ALL therapies. My wife, a senior psychiatry resident, disagrees with many of your assertions about the wonders of CBT. She feels it works for some, yet for other's, their inability to take action, is greatly benefited from long-term talking therapy. Actually she just had a seminar entitled: CBT, Transference and Counter-Transference. Hmmm, sounds very analytic.

We should all be careful of the source and author when taking advice from a chat room, BB,etc...especially when it pertains to our health.

Stepping off the soap-box...

 

[legidan]

But if a person wants to go to psychoanalytic or general talk therapy to try to deal with procrastination, then I personally would advise strongly against it, but of course, anyone can do whatever they want, and feel free to disagree. Its just regular folks here sharing their ideas, experiences and opinions.

Funny you should mention this because (and I'm gong to be cryptic on purpose to avoid embarrassing the individual...he lurks/posts on these boards) there's a friend of mine who's been seeing a CBT specialist for procrastination and is leaving him for an analytically trained therapist. He claims the suggestions and exercises worked for a few months, but the underlying causes of his procrastination are too complex for CBT therapy. And the kicker...his therapist agreed.

 

[monkeyjava]

Cosmo,

Are you a therapist? Because you're busy making knee-jerk diagnosis on a on-line bulletin board (something a trained therapist would never do) and telling people to "avoid other types of therapy" when study after study shows that relationship (therapist/client), not modality, is the strongest predictor of successful outcome i.e. reduced symptom.

I was really, really enjoying this thread until this. I was also in no danger of mistaking anyone for a therapist. It was nice to hear regular folks talk about the ordinary issues they struggle with. I was thinking about posting tricks that worked for me, but guess I should make sure they don't contradict "study after study" first. Not being a scientist, I really don't want to do that much research.

 

[CosmoGTD]

I am going to "push" and even force myself to resist getting into the "therapy wars" line of discussion, as that would literally be yet another form of avoidance/procrastination from dealing with the stated subject of this thread!

Each person needs to think very carefully, and experiment and try and see what works for them, while also carefully looking at the scientific data.
There is no harm in trying Behavioral Experiments. Its fun.
I personally think it can be a very serious error to frame procrastination as being something "too complex" to be dealt with with bottom up behavior therapy. A person can literally waste a lot of years of their life doing that, it can be a real trap. Dr. Albert Ellis has stated many times that people often specifically go into psychoanalytic therapy because it allows them to sit on their butts and literally AVOID actually DOING certain things. Its avoidance writ large and institutionalized. I happen to agree with that position, but hey, I am getting sucked into it again!
Back to work!

To me this thread is not about "personality modification" with therapy. Its literally about how to get SPECIFIC GTD Next Actions done, and brainstorming and trying different things. I happen to have found CBT, REBT, and behavior therapy to be amazingly helpful in this context. I am not trying to evangelize the world with this thread. Its simply a tool for "thinking out loud" and trying to make GTD work better, and for me, so far its helping.

GTD is actually a cognitive-behavioral intervention. The cognitive aspect is all of mental work that goes into GTD. The Next Action idea is literally pure behavior therapy. GTD is about ACTION, Getting Things Done, and we get things done with Behavior. Its very simple.
I actually would say that GTD is a set Behavioral-Cognitive techniques.

Monkeyjava, I would like to hear whatever tricks and tips you have. The great think about public brainstorming, is that we can all get new ideas that perhaps we have not thought about, or even heard about before.

ActionGirl, (great name!), the idea for just sitting with the material, or just doing something amazingly simple, I got from Dr. David Burns in his seriously excellent book "The Feeling Good Handbook", which has some chapters on procrastination.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0452281326/102-9353852-7829716?v=glance&n=283155
I am paraphrasing, but he puts forward scientifically tested ideas, that are actually very similar to GTD, up to a point. If we are procrastinating, his view is the same as the GTD view, its because of how we are "representing" the project and behavior in our heads. His approach is to specifically define the precise behavior, just like GTD.
Then he adds the idea of scheduling a time to work on it.
Then he states, just work on it for 5 or 15 minutes, if you are really resisting it. This is where it diverges somewhat from GTD, (but not really). Dr. Burns states that we have to learn how to TOLERATE UNCOMFORTABLE EMOTIONS.
This is extremely profound, and I think is the cause of almost all procrastination. You see, we want to avoid doing X, as when we start to do it, we start to "feel bad". (anxiety, frustration, rage, etc).
So Dr. Burns says that instead of avoiding feeling this way, we have to learn to TOLERATE those unpleasant feelings, and in doing so, those feelings will actually diminish or even vanish. This has happened with me countless times.

Its similar to GTD in the sense that we want to modify our Thinking to modify how we are feeling about a NA or project. That is pure GTD, in terms of redefining what we are doing.
But this is not always going to work, for some of us.
So the next step Burns suggests, is to just do something simple, like get out the piece of paper, and sit with it even for 5 minutes, as we can stand any emotion for 5 minutes!. It sounds silly, but sometimes we need to go that far. Then you extend this over time. Its not good to start with sitting for an hour, I should not have said that. You start with 5 or 15 minutes, and then you take a break. But you may find once you start, an hour flies by!

I would only do something like stare at the computer for an hour if I had a serious deadline, and a ton of work, and was having a serious procrastination issue. As I said before, that would be a "penalty" for not doing what I want to do! (not a punishment!). You see, we can't REWARD ourselves for putting stuff off, as that creates trouble. If we put stuff off, and then watch TV instead to avoid doing what we want to do, then we are rewarding poor behavior. Watching our favorite TV show needs to be a REWARD.
So yes, its the same thing as dealing with kids! We are all just big kids.

If we really look very carefully at procrastination, its not the Task, Project or Next Action Behavior that is the problem. Its usually how we FEEL when we START to do it, that is the problem. Its PAINFUL so our brain resists it, that is the bottom line.

So with GTD, we cognitively try to modify how we are thinking about the NA, to try and get a "pull" towards the NA or project. When that works, great!
But sometimes its not going to work, as our brain is not completely rational, as we all know.

So if we can just give ourselves a little PUSH, or a huge PUSH, then most of the time once we START, it starts to flow. But if it does not, work for 15 minutes, then take a break. Work for 15 more, take a break, etc.
I would suggest folks really TRY the idea out, the idea of just giving themselves a PUSH, when redefining the NA does not give you a natural "pull" to the NA. Do all the GTD stuff first, but if there still is not a "pull" to the task, then give yourself a push to get started.

Hey, it just occurred to me, this literally is about INERTIA and Newtons First Law Of Motion. Seriously, this is exactly what I think I have been trying to say all along. I don't think this is just a metaphor, I think it is literally true. Once we give ourselves a PUSH, we are injecting ENERGY into the system, and this energy literally carries itself forward. That is why if we are "stuck" we need to give a "push" to "get things moving".
Perhaps this is why some folks seem to flow so much better as they are already moving, and have a lot of "momentum".
To get any Behavior to move forward, it literally takes physical ENERGY, and this is what this PUSH is, the energy to "kickstart" the engine.
If we just inject this physical energy into the Behavior, then it can literally get that behavior in motion, and an object in motion tends to stay in motion...very very interesting...

http://www.glenbrook.k12.il.us/gbssci/phys/Class/newtlaws/u2l1b.html

"Newton's first law of motion states that "An object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force." Objects "tend to keep on doing what they're doing." In fact, it is the natural tendency of objects to resist changes in their state of motion. This tendency to resist changes in their state of motion is described as inertia.

Inertia = the resistance an object has to a change in its state of motion.

 

[CosmoGTD]

Update and follow-through:

By the way, my Project #2 that I put off for a month, due to its personal and emotive difficulty, is DONE, and has been couriered.
I rewarded myself with an ice cream cone after I went to the post office!

What is fascinating, is that I thought this Project would take about 5 hours of solid work.
It took 16 hours of very intense work and effort.
I wonder why I was so strongly resisting a personal Project, that is very emotionally draining, complex, difficult, and that is going to take 16 hours of work to get done in 5 days? (sarcasm alert).

I have noticed this pattern time and time again. Sometimes we underestimate the pure TIME and effort needed for a project, so our brain puts it off and avoids it.

But anyway, by PUSHING myself to get started, there was some momentum in this project, but I did have to keep pushing myself each time I started. I almost stopped doing it many many times.
Near the end the excitement of finishing took over, and an almost all-nighter finished it up.
And again, of course, posting that envelope felt AMAZING.
I also finished a week early, even though I put it off for a month and was severely "dreading" it.

So anyway, this is the precise formula that literally works for me, almost every single time, when I choose to work it. Perhaps it will work every time, we'll see over the next while.
I really do think the key part is that "push" to just get it started.
That is where the rubber really meets the road.

To be grandiouse, our dreams are realized literally by the physical DOING of our tiny, innocent Next Actions, even if the NA is not perfectly defined or executed.
The actual physical execution of the innocent and imperfect tiny Next Action in the moment is what makes it all happen.

 

[carol]

Taking steps

Hi,

Well I thought I'd report back. I have found the movie program CD and put it beside the computer. First step done.

However, I've been thinking more about why the video project hasn't got started. I've realised that the problem starts BEFORE the first next action. I have been told that videos take LOTS of hard disk space! My computer doesn't have a lot of room left and really needs cleaning to make room. Maybe I'm worried about deleting the wrong things, then finding I need them later. It also seems like a major (and boring) job to go through all the directories and files to check if something can safely be removed. My brain is telling me it will take hours (that I don't have) and so I'm putting it off.

Perhaps my Next Action should be spend x minutes clearing rubbish out of xyz directory?

Regards

Carol

 

[CosmoGTD]

Yes, digital video needs huge hard-drive space. The best thing to do, in my opinion, is to go and buy a second hard-drive for video, if you plan on using the video camera more than once. You can buy a 100GB hard drive these days for a good price.
You need about 1GB for 4 minutes of video! Here is a quick primer.
http://desktopvideo.about.com/od/editing/f/diskspeed_ro.htm

It is very interesting to me, that in so many cases when we are not doing something we want to do, it turns out there are all sorts of little hidden obstacles that we did not even think about consciously.

This is exactly what I just went through with my recent project.
I really thought it would take 5 hours, and it took 16 hours! That blows my mind I could be off by 3x.
This is a very common occurrence. Some part of our brain knows its a 16 hour job, whereas we think consciously its a 5 hour job. No wonder we resist it.

Hi,

Well I thought I'd report back. I have found the movie program CD and put it beside the computer. First step done.

However, I've been thinking more about why the video project hasn't got started. I've realised that the problem starts BEFORE the first next action. I have been told that videos take LOTS of hard disk space! My computer doesn't have a lot of room left and really needs cleaning to make room.

 

[msherring]

Too Many projects, sub-project and n/a's

I've read most of the posts on this thread. Maybe time for another topic.

I've been flirting w/ GTD for about a year or so. I was very gungho early on. Spent 2 days gathering everthing. When I was finished, I had over 300 N/As. Looking back not all of them were truly next actions. I couldn't avoid stopping my mind from thinking ahead 3 or 4 actions and listing them for fear of forgetting them. I would work off the list, but often the list was so large, and I had so many things that seemingly screamed to be done now, that I didn't do any of them. I've read the book, but have had a difficult time visulizing exactly how to organize my n/a vs. projects vs areas of responsibility.

Don't hold this against me, but I'm an attorney (sounds like the beginning of an AA meeting). I've got about 60 files or cases. Each one, depending on complexity, may have 10 to 15 projects with seveal n/a's for each project. Early in a case, I'll brainstorm about everything that needs to be done, the result of which can create numerous projects. Often there are no hard deadlines, save a trial date with corresponding discovery/deposition cut-off, etc. Between the time suit is filed and trial may be 9 months to a year, so its easy to put off the projects.

The overwhelming number of n/a's that don't have a deadline, but all of which seem to need to be done at the same time often leads to procrastination and my doing simply whatever fire pops up in front of me.

Questions:
How to organize an immense number of n/a's?

Aside, from upcoming hard deadlines, how to decide what n/a's or projects to handle?

What to do and where to keep projects v. n/a's, especially where I have seveal that are equally important on a particular case?

How to get past being frozen by the shear volume of projects and n/a's.

Thanks in advance for your time in responding.

 

[msherring]

Overwhelmed by n/a's, projects, etc

I've read most of the posts on this thread. Here's another question.

I've been flirting w/ GTD for about a year or so. I was very gungho early on. Spent 2 days gathering everthing. When I was finished, I had over 300 N/As. Looking back not all of them were truly next actions. I couldn't avoid stopping my mind from thinking ahead 3 or 4 actions and listing them for fear of forgetting them. I would work off the list, but often the list was so large, and I had so many things that seemingly screamed to be done now, that I didn't do any of them. I've read the book, but have had a difficult time visulizing exactly how to organize my n/a vs. projects vs areas of responsibility.

Don't hold this against me, but I'm an attorney (sounds like the beginning of an AA meeting). I've got about 60 files or cases. Each one, depending on complexity, may have 10 to 15 projects with several n/a's for each project. Early in a case, I'll brainstorm about everything that needs to be done, the result of which can create numerous projects. Often there are no hard deadlines, save a trial date with corresponding discovery/deposition cut-off, etc. Between the time suit is filed and trial may be 9 months to a year, so its easy to put off the projects.

The overwhelming number of n/a's that don't have a deadline, but all of which seem to need to be done at the same time often leads to procrastination and my working on simply whatever fire pops up in front of me.

Questions:
How to organize an immense number of n/a's?

Aside, from upcoming hard deadlines, how to decide what n/a's or projects to handle?

What to do and where to keep projects v. n/a's, especially where I have several that are equally important on a particular case?

How to get past being frozen by the shear volume of projects and n/a's.

Thanks in advance for your time in responding.