What helps you all with "task initiation"?

@AnonymousWriter13

Hi Writer! 😊 ❤️  Thank you for your forum post as well as your for question. It sure is a great one! Rest assured, you are not alone my friend. This truly is something that so many struggle with. Even the best of the best of "task masters" struggle with this from time to time. ❤️

While I cannot provide advice, meaning "you should go and do this", what I can offer to you are tips and tricks that I use in daily life that serve me well to answer your direct question about "me" or things that I have heard that work well for others. Simply a sharing of information in effort to be helpful. Please feel free to never subjugate your thoughts, feelings or process for mine. 

So lets see.....

While it may seem a bit rudimentary, there are a some tenants that I hold near and dear to my heart. First one is "a thousand mile journey begins with the very first step" as well as "there is nothing so quite as taxing, as the task left undone". These are things that are part of my thought process and part of my "self talk" to help me in an effort to move forward. 

For me, I'm a "plan your work and work your plan" kind of person. I use what is called an "at a glance calendar". This is a calendar that is tangible and I write in it with a pen. I make short term goals, long term goals and I write them down. (Physically writing something as opposed to typing it actives a different part of the brain).

I know what it is that I need to accomplish today, tomorrow, by the end of the week, end of the month, etc. Before I go to bed at night, I already know what it is that is on my agenda for the next day. I use it as a check list, as well as for other things. 

I can wake up in the morning and "hit the ground running" lol 😊. It flows, I know what needs to be done with out making decisions. 

For certain tasks I will "walk the path mentally" of all of the steps required to accomplish it. First comes this, next comes that and so on. I break down the task into smaller, manageable steps. I think to myself ..."self, what's the best way to eat an elephant? Self, the best way to eat an elephant would be one bite at a time". 😊

I envision me doing each part, each step of the process. I also envision how it would look once I was done, how great it would feel to complete the task and bask in the glow of a job well done. In essence, I have become my very own, personal cheerleader! Wooooooo hooooooooo! You can do it! Weeeeeeeee weeeeeeee! 😊

Sometimes I use the power of music, listen to things that I find empowering or motivational to help me along while working. Makes life and tasks much more fun for me personally. 

Some like to set a timer for things. I have heard it can be a good strategy to set a simple kitchen timer for 15 minutes with the commitment that one will work on the task for the allotted time, take a break and then reset the timer and jump back in. (I have done that as well for some things and it has worked well).

Others work well on the reward system. Kind of like, making a deal with ones self. Just for an example, it could look like....if I complete task x, y, and z today, I will reward myself with whatever it is that one likes, tv time, talking on the phone, watching fun youtube videos, a piece of candy, etc. It can feel good to celebrate ones victories in that way too! 🥳

A fun thing that I have recently purchased (just yesterday) are "to do list bracelets". This will be a part of my holiday gift giving for busy people just like myself. Wearable, washable, worn on ones wrist to jot down ideas, thoughts when they come during the day for quick access or reminders that certain things should be done. 

Writer, thank you again for your amazing forum post and query. I'm hoping my responses were of some benefit to you or to others that may come along and might enjoy them as well. If not, I will remain hopeful that others will engage with us here and give us all some tips and tricks on how to navigate the concept of "task initiation". 

*high fives* 😊 and *hugs* ❤️

@SparkyGizmo

Wow thank you for this thorough and thoughtful reply. Lots of ideas here; some ive tried and some i havent. I had no idea "to do list bracelets" were a thing >_< these look super helpful.

I use my phone, but often its the case with me of "out of sight, out of mind". 

I agree that pomodoros (15 minute sessions) of doing tasks can help sometimes. Sometimes I even just do 2 or 5 minutes because...well.. motivation T_T lol

Some really nice pointers here and I appreciate your feedback. ❤️ Thanks

@AnonymousWriter13

❤️❤️❤️

@AnonymousWriter13

You are most welcome my friend! 😊 ❤️  I'm really glad that some of my thoughts were helpful! It really means a lot to me that you let me know that I had something of value to offer to you!❤️ I am most grateful! ❤️

I'm glad that you enjoyed hearing about the "to do bracelets". I had only recently heard of them as well. I thought they were a fantastic idea! I just received them in the mail. The ones I got were from Amazon and it was $8.67 U.S dollars for a package of 6.

I'll be dividing them up to include with other gifts for family and friends and or stocking stuffers for the holidays. I'll include a small expo marker (dry erase) with them as well. I'll be keeping one for myself too.

Mine didn't come with directions however, the product that I got when I read the product information  said that it could be used with an oil based ballpoint pen, that it is reusable and the writing can be washed off over and over, but it's best to remove it before 24 hours to not stay permanent. Hmmm, ergo me going the dry erase marker route! 😊

Eureka! 💡You are brilliant my friend! You just provided another amazing tip for others, should they come along and read your thread! 😊 The phone, the phone, eek! 😳 Agreed, devices can be good to jot down reminders, set alarms of when things should be done, whatever one would like to use it for. Agreed, if it is out of sight, it's out of mind so those could be missed............

However, removal of the phone from ones area could be pivotal in helping with task initiation, staying on task, task completion.💡If one receives a call or a text from another...sure is hard to resist the urge to pick that phone up and check what it's in regard to as well as the "sense of urgency" to respond. 

Ones mood can shift based on the nature of the text or call. If it's a call one may be stuck to stay in it in an effort to not be rude or even based on the information, feel the need to "shift gears" and focus ones attention in a totally different way. 

It can be a wonderful idea to remove the phone and for certain periods of time. One can hide the phone from ones self, lol 😊 as in putting it in another room, one farther away, harder to hear and harder to get to. No urge to resist now! 😊 I love outwitting myself, I've become quite good at it, hahah hhahahaha! 🧠

It can feel quite freeing to not be swept away in the tide of others random thoughts, needs or queries. It's okay to set boundaries with others as well as with yourself. Distractions can be most difficult and I call them "oh, there goes a chicken.....wonder what he's doing, let's watch it" or "oooohhh, I see something shiny, let me look" lol 😊

For some, even self removal of the phone can make someone feel quite anxious at first. One could start small if needed, remove it for 30 minutes ⏰, go check and then leave it where it was. Over time, perhaps one could graduate to an hour ⏰. I think at least an hour would be most optimal. 

Writer, again, more *high fives* 😊 I could not agree with you more. 15 minutes on a kitchen timer could be a bit much for some. 2 minutes, 5 minutes, hey, it's all good and it's still on the path to progress! Weeeeeeeeeeeee weeeeeeeeee! 😊

Thank you again for your amazing forum post, for your incredibly kind feedback for me and allowing me to spend here with you as well as others. I'm enjoying the process.

*high fives* 😊 and big *hugs* ❤️

I have this problem too but i try to force myself to do gradually i am doing some tasks but it still feels hard i keep telling myself this is a need for me and its emergency for me

@Mekuland3050

Hi Mekuland! 😊 ❤️ Thank you for joining the thread and I loved hearing your thoughts! 

You are not alone my friend as so many of us deal with this as well! ❤️

While I'm not here to ever provide advice per say, meaning "you should go and do this or that" it is nice to share information, toss around ideas, brainstorm with one another. 

One thing that has helped me in life is changing my verbiage, words that I use with myself, positive self talk, etc. I try to be mindful of what it is that I am thinking, I engage in what is called "meta-cognition" which is simply thinking about what it is that I am thinking about. I try to be mindful of word choice as that can really effect me or anyone else for that matter. I guess some could even call it "thought replacement". 

An example would be something I choose not to say to myself which is "I have to go to work now". 

Instead I say to myself "I am going to go to work now". 

"Have to" implies someone else forcing me to do something, something that I don't want to do and that I have no choice in the matter. Well, that isn't a really fun feeling, at all 😊. Gee, who wants to be made to do something they do not wish to do? 😳

In an effort to be of help, I personally, wouldn't use the word "force" with myself any longer when it comes to beginning tasks or task completion. It implies that I have no choice, no freedom, perhaps no joy in a job well done.

For me also, I wouldn't tell myself this is a "need" for me, I would replace the word "need" with the word "choice" or "decision". I don't know, for some reason it just makes me feel a lot better about what it is that I am doing, whatever it may be. For me, I now see the world "need" as in basic human needs like food, clean water to drink, air to breath and proper shelter. 

In addition, for word or phrase replacement, I choose to not use the word "emergency" as for me, that has a very strong connotation. Emergencies represent to me life and limb, drop everything and involves no choice, but instead quick reaction. One must do, what one must do in those situations. I instead, replace that word with a phrase that is "addressing an issue with a sense of urgency". 

To start tasks I also think of how this is me, helping my future self. I'm doing this for me. I'm not doing it for some scary, angry boss that is looming over me and sometimes the way in which we speak to ourselves can really make it feel that way. I've been there my friend. ❤️ 

I have had to ask myself "who is this big scary boss person that I am working for"? Come to find out, it was me all along, and luckily for me, I have better odds at changing me than any one else around me. I have no desire to change others. They have to seek change for themselves. I can simply act in a fiduciary role in an effort for their best interests if they would like. ❤️

Lastly, in the way of positive self talk, if I'm facing a task with a bit of trepidation, worry, concern, I take a deep breath. Big, big breath and I count down, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, exhale and then say "I'm really excited to do this right now". 

Interesting enough, this works for some as the bodies response to concern and excitement are most similar so I trick my brain, I outwit myself, lol 😊 It can help in the moment from time to time. 

I'm hoping this was helpful for you today! ❤️ If not, I understand and perhaps it could be of benefit for another if they come and visit the thread. Thank you for being here and I have really enjoyed trying my best for you and spending time here with you today. 

*high fives* 😊 and *hugs* ❤️

Thank you so much it helps a lot ! I had no idea how do i really handle this! Everything feels so hard and heavy ! Appreciate this! ❤️

@Mekuland3050

You are most welcome my friend! 😊 ❤️ Nothing pleases me more than to know that something that I said, may have been of benefit for you! 

Thank you for your feedback, thank you for your positive affirmations as well as for the seeing value in me as well as value in my efforts! 

*high fives* 😊 and big *hugs* ❤️

@AnonymousWriter13

My therapist told me to follow a method he called "Time over Task."

Instead of focusing on the task, give it a time period and focus on that. If I say to myself "I need to write this paper today. I HAVE to write this paper today." chances are I will stress out a lot but I won't do it because "I have to do it" is not a concrete, timebound plan. If I make a realistic timebound plan, though, I'll focus on the time period instead of the task. I could instead say, "At 2pm today I will spend 45 minutes working on this paper." and put it in my calendar like it's a class I have to attend or an appointment I can't miss.

Give your task a realistic amount of time, then block that out on a calendar, and treat it like an appointment with someone.

@AnonymousWriter13 Starting tasks can be hard when you're not feeling motivated or urgent about them. Here are some simple tips to help you begin tasks you might not want to do:

@AnonymousWriter13

Ah the getting started struggle. It's real. I'm so glad you've got loads of amazing tips from everyone here, I'm sure they'll help a lot of people!

I just wanted to add one or two things :)

Firstly, make it as easy as humanly possible to do 'the thing' e.g. put the right clothes out for the next day or place the thing in your shoes or put a note on the bathroom mirror etc etc

Secondly, if you have one of those days where you don't manage to do 'the thing' please be kind to yourself. We're working with a special type of brain, we're going to mess up sometimes. But know that just because you struggled in this moment doesn't mean that you can't do it in another.

Fox 💚