Reverse laziness

concepts
Effective time management strategies for tasks they dislike and the benefits of such strategies, including reduced stress and increased peace of mind.
Author

Lucas A. Meyer

Published

October 27, 2021

I’ve noticed a behavior in both my professional life and with my kids doing their homework: people spend a lot of time on things they don’t like.

Many years ago, I had that realization about myself. For some things I didn’t like doing, I’d procrastinate, complain, but ultimately ended up having to be engaged with that task over a long period of time. During that time, the stress of the task kept hanging over me.

I decided to do a deal with myself: I’d set up a short but reasonable time to do the task and during that time I’d do the best I could. At the end, I’d be done. Back then, I didn’t know about the #pomodoro method, which can actually be used in a similar way.

After that, the “dwell time” of tasks that annoyed me dropped sharply: once I booked the time, the task was mostly out of my mind. Once I finished the allocated time, I’d be in peace. Things that used to annoy me for a week became things that bothered me for an hour.

I even started to like some of the tasks I thought I wouldn’t. Getting started is half the battle.

I still couldn’t convince my kids.