After much prompting, I read a book called Getting Things Done and I realized that at least 70%+ of this “system” is something I figured out in Uni 25 years ago.
You fellows know what fucking monumental project I’m undertaking now? I have 4 cats. My parents have 2 and there are 2 other ex-strays that hang around their house. For some reason, they ALL have ear infections. 8 FUCKING CATS. EAR INFECTIONS. I’ve medicated 5. Swabbed, tested and cleaned the ears of 8 twice and “delegated” 2 by getting time release medications at the vet for the less severe ones because the time release medication sucks. The author is a choir boy compared to me. A CHOIR BOY!
This is why I conjugate with lions.
EDIT
Ok, seriously I’m not kidding. I have 3 fucking spreadsheets with similar categories to how the flow chart looks like what people online whom have read the book have done and, like the author implies, if you put in the effort in writing every single thing down and thoroughly understanding the shit you need to do by linking notes and breaking down every task you need to do, eventually, it will become instinctual plus, his 2min rule, which I’ve also been using for 25 years but never really thought about it, is described very eloquently and I’d recommend that anyone who has trouble with time management and anxiety read it. I understand that lots of people have trouble with this, which is why so many people insisted that I NEEDED TO READ IT when I really didn’t so I’m gonna highly recommend it because it has been described as “life changing”. It’s pretty much why I’m one of the few who get fucked up by CBT while every single person I’ve known who has done it got better.
I’m even going to add that the “if the task can be done 2mins and under” do it immediately has a compounding effect that triggers you to do all other short lasting tasks that may or may not take under 2min when you’re in a state of “low energy” and you end up doing 4-5 ones that would have piled up since stuff like these are the ones that you end up developing the habit of procrastination on if you don’t get started on them.
So, here’s a the main point in a nutshell gradually realized when I was in school and then working doing 70+ hour weeks for years after I start working but have never been capable of articulating in such an eloquent manner:
If you wanna be successful, as in completing all the shit needed to be done, you don’t do that “willpower” shit although some things like getting your ass to the gym requires it since it is developing habits that sustain you when the chips are down (unless they’re REALLY down like when I got mentally fucked doing CBT - WHICH IS RECOGNIZED AS LEGIT BY BOTH PSYCHIATRISTS AND PSYCHOLOGISTS SO DON’T LET WHAT HAPPENED TO ME DETER YOU IF YOU REALLY NEED HELP BUT FUCKING GO FOR CONSULTATION WITH A CERTIFIED HEALTH PROFESSIONAL FIRST TO DETERMINE WHAT YOU REALLY NEED - and then started with 70+ hour days working and taking a free course and it’s been a fucking harrowing ordeal, to say the least.
The importance is to find the paths of least resistance. The willpower thing, while I still consider really important, is part of the 25% that I do not agree with the author. When really fucking big and bad shit happens, most people I know start “powering through the tough shit” when the entire crisis is something that can be broken down into multiple components and resolved in order of importance and/or resistance level. This is especially true in Asia because of how, Chinese men in my generation at least, were brought up. The “take the bull by the horns shit”.
The description of the thought process to find this path is almost identical to mine.
The traditional way of thinking ends up turning into an acts of self-flagellation and even when the shit has been resolved, what I’ve seen is that not only was it not resolved optimally, the same people who tell me to read all these “productivity” stuff ended up weaker, not tougher mentally. When you can break down a crisis into different components and resolve them, e.g, in an order that causes the least resistance, it cannot break YOU since you are the one in control when you break it down.
A simple example because I really cannot write like the author does, which is why I’m recommending that anyone who has problems with procrastination and/or time management read it:
I’ve said here for years that I made showing up at the gym a responsibility since I really don’t like it. This is where the willpower stuff come into play. HOWEVER, it’s also why I’ve also been saying I never had a fixed workout once I’m there discounting the times I paid for Mountain Dog programs because the money I invested made me follow them stop myself for lifting too heavy for certain cycles when joint problems started since it’s keep shit like this dynamic *(after you’ve put in the effort to know and evaluate shit). If you have enough self-awareness and put in the initial effort to dissect every single thing you need to do, which is the fucking hard part, and develop an almost instinctual understanding of what is important and what isn’t, this is how you get shit done.
Just thought I would share some stuff that I could never articulate in an understandable manner to anyone prior to this than just making a silly post that brought no value.
You still have doubts? Give me an email address and I’ll send you the invoices and the medications that need to be manually administered in the EARS 1-2x daily for 6 fucking high strung cats and the washing schedule for 8. Do you know ANYONE who can handle shit this monumental? DO YOU? This is fucking WW1 trench warfare kind of shit.
