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Do you ever feel like your body and mind are working against each other? You wake up feeling motivated and ready to tackle your to do list. You made your plan the night before, and knew exactly what you were going to do, how, and when. But then the time comes to follow through, and you feel like your body is suddenly made of lead and you’ve hit a wall of productivity paralysis.
Then you just sit there for a good hour or two, paralyzed by the thought of executing the first task. Your brain screams “LETS GO ALREADY”, but your body just won’t listen. It’s almost as if there’s another voice, deep inside your brain arguing with the productive one that wants you to get moving. This other one feels overwhelmed by the idea of performing even just the first task, and counteracts any motivating thoughts you have going through your mind.
Don’t even get me started on the doom scrolling that’s probably already taking place, to distracted from the feelings of anxiety that are now overwhelmingly present.
You are not alone in feeling this way. It’s a more common challenge than you might know actually. Probably because people don’t often talk about it in groups of acquaintances, or maybe not even between close friends. You might feel like the people close to you in your life “have it all figured out” and are able to keep up with their to do list without breaking a sweat, and don’t become paralyzed like you do.
There are some people who truly don’t struggle with this, making those of us who do feel bad about our selves and what we perceive as a short coming. Which is why I am here today to tell you, that nothing is wrong with you! Below are some strategies that I use daily to overcome this crippling productivity paralysis state and get things done.
What is Productivity Paralysis?
Productivity paralysis, also sometimes referred to as “analysis paralysis”, “work paralysis”, and “workload paralysis”, can be defined as a feeling or state of “paralysis” brought on by an over whelming number of tasks or responsibilities that you are, or feel, obligated to tackle. Even the smallest of task can cause you to feel locked in place, draining every ounce of motivation rom your body.
Once productivity paralysis sets in and you feel glued to your spot you feel completely unable to tap into those feelings of motivation that you had just moments ago. You may even begin to indulge in “procrastination” type activities instead, such as doom scrolling, talking on the phone with a friend, binge watching a show, etc. Almost in an effort to avoid the feelings of guilt and anxiety that have now over come you. Guilt that you know you’re losing time that you wanted to utilize to be productive, but feel powerless to be able to do anything about it.
So let’s talk about what you can do to stop productivity paralysis in its tracks, and get back to being the motivated and productive person that you woke up feeling like this morning.
5 Strategies to Break Free
After years of struggling with these feelings, and watching time pass as I sat on my couch planted in my spot, I’ve figured out a few strategies to combat these feelings so that I can get back to work. Strategies that include using a timer, the benefits of reorganizing my to-do list, the power of embracing imperfection, and finally, addressing underlying causes that need to be addressed.
The Power of the Timer
At this very moment I am using my Pomodoro timer in order to get this blog post written in a timely manner. Otherwise I become easily distracted by other items on my to do list, or just distracted by random thoughts or tasks I have no business doing at this very moment.
When I first came across this solution I thought it was silly, but holy cow, has it made a huge difference on my productivity levels!
Now you might be wondering what a Pomodoro timer is. So let me explain little…
The word “pomodoro” is Italian for “tomato“. What do tomatoes have to do with distraction and productivity paralysis? Nothing! The phrase actually came from the late 80’s when a man named Francesco Cirillo was in college and tryin out a new study tactic. He had a little kitchen timer that was designed to look like a tomato. Hence the name of this method. He would set the time at 25 minute intervals or “sprints”. Francesco would commit 25 minutes at a time to his college studies, with 5 minute break intervals in between. After 4 of these 25 minute periods he would then allow himself a longer, 20 minute break.
And thus, the Pomodoro method was born!
Using this method can help you to stay focused and on task, while also avoiding feelings of overwhelm and producivity paralysis. Having a long to-do list in front of you can feel daunting and at times suffocating. Leading to a state of productivity paralysis where nothing is able to be accomplished, as much as you’d love to check off every single task list item. Working in 25 minute intervals, where that 25 minute chunk is dedicated strictly to focusing on one task allows you to put all of your focus on that one thing. Knowing that in 25 minutes you will be able to get started on the next thing and not miss out on it by being stuck in the first task.
In order to start using this method to your advantage, you don’t have to go out and buy some fancy tomato timer or some fancy app on your phone. You CAN, but there are several free phone apps you can use. Or if you have a smart phone, you likely have a built in timer in your phone that you can manually set in 25 minute intervals.
The app that I use on my laptop is called Be Focused. A very simple timer app that comes with work-break interval options. I have another app on my phone that helps me with focus/productivity called Forest. This one is more of a game/incentvization. With Forest, for every completed timer interval you will have “grown” a tree in your little digital forest. I used this one a lot during nursing school to get through my study sessions. The app for the phone is free, but from what I’ve seen the computer app (Mac) is paid. Not sure why that is, but I still find the phone version incredibly helpful!
Added bonus, Forest partners with real tree planting organizations. For all digital coins spent in the app they donate money to these organizations.
Start Small and Celebrate the Wins
You might have been feeling little ambitious when writing your to-do list, and now that it’s time to tackle it, some of your task feel big and intimidating. Instead of feeling defeated by these large tasks that feel overwhelming and stressful, break them down into manageable pieces in order to combat productivity paralysis.
You will find that it’s easier to attack a larger task, piece by piece, rather than trying to put your mental energy into finishing it all at once. An example of a task that I always have to break down, at least mentally, is my laundry. Laundry is my absolute least favorite house chore. But instead of just writing “laundry” on my to-do list. I will write “start load of laundry”, “get laundry into dryer”, and finally, “hang/put away clothes”. Breaking it down like this helps me to get the task started, rather than feeling overwhelmed by the idea of it all. And while the laundry washes I move onto a piece of another task. “Load and start dish washer”.
I did this while I was still in college too. Productivity paralysis would get me into a lot of trouble (with myself) during this period of my life. Instead of “write paper”, my tasks would be along the lines of “Read instructions for paper and outline”, “write draft of paper”, “Revise and prepare for submission.” Since I always would find my self starting and finishing assignments in the few days before the due dats, I started to implement this method. It allowed me to at least get some sort of headway on my assignments earlier on. So even when it came down to those final few days before the due date I would have a good portion if not all but revision of the assignment done by that time.
Celebrating the small wins is also important, as it will help you to maintain your motivation to keep moving and getting things done. Not to say you should indulge in a little treat for each small task accomplished, but definitely a pat on the back for yourself for each check mark on your to do list, because you’re pushing past any feeling of anxiety and learning how to work with yourself rather than against yourself here.
Just Get Started (Even if Imperfectly)
Only this year have I begun to embrace imperfection in my efforts to overcome productivity paralysis, rather than continuing to be buried under the weight of feeling like everything needs to be done perfectly. Or not at all. It makes a tremendous difference when you can accept the idea of imperfection, and allow yourself to act despite it. Rather than letting the idea of perfection convince you that you can only accomplish something if it’s going to be perfect when you do it.
Read more about embracing perfection here, on my blog post!
“Progress over perfection”, is one of my favorite mantras recently. Keeping this in mind will be an incredibly effective tool in helping you to overcome productivity paralysis. It’s also applicable to a lot of different challenges you might face! I’ve used “progress over perfection” when working to stay motivated to work on my health/weight loss and it’s made a world of difference in my mindset.
Address the Underlying Cause
By this, I don’t mean some sort of underlying medical condition. More so a holistic view of your day to day habits and things you have going on. Are you getting enough sleep? Fueling your body with the proper nutrition it needs to thrive physically and mentally? Are there outside stressors (work, relationship, etc) that are weighing on you more heavily than you realized?
Factors such as sleep, nutrition, and stress levels can most certainly have a big impact on your ability to stay productive and mange your own internal stressors. It’s important to take inventory of these factors on a regular basis, to make sure that you are meeting all of your own personal needs as a human.
Take Aways
Productivity paralysis is undoubtedly a real thing, and a real struggle of many many people. You are not alone in this feeling, nor are you trapped in it forever! By utilizing strategies such as timers such as the one in the app Forest, breaking down larger tasks into smaller, easier to tackle ones, celebrating the small wins as you go, you will find it easier to break out of your paralysis if not avoid it entirely over time.
Additional strategies that you can implement include learning to embrace imperfection and choosing progress over perfection. Addressing any underlying causes or problems will also make a huge impact. You may be surprised to see how big of a difference an extra hour of sleep or nutritious meal that isn’t from a drive through, will make on your energy and mental clarity.
Resources:
- Atomic Habits by James Clear. This book is absolutely life changing!
- The Five Second Rule by Mel Robbins. Mel is amazing, and provides so much raw insight in this book as well as in her other books and podcast!
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