Photo by Annie Spratt
I have a habit of starting new projects and not finishing them. I have a lot of hobbies and interests, but very few completed projects. My documents folder is a random assortment of abandoned songs, articles, video games, web applications, and videos.
One of my goals for 2022 was to start writing frequently, which was the original intent of resurrecting my dead marcussnow.dev website. However, in my very first post I hint toward my lack of faith that I’ll be able to blog consistently.
Part of the trouble posting here is that this website has a small identity crisis. Is this a portfolio website to showcase my skills? Is this a tutorial hub I’m building to help promote my “brand” and show competency for career growth? Or is this a personal blog where I write about whatever I’m thinking about at the moment.
But let me not get too carried away about the specifics of why I’m having trouble keeping up with this particular hobby. I’ve managed to do something that has helped me to complete a tremendous amount of things I had been procrastinating on.
About two months ago I was feeling a bit overwhelmed at everything I wanted to do. So I did what many a productivity blog would suggest, and I created a to do list. A big one. I brain dumped everything I thought I would need to do. I took my time with the list.
After I wrote it, I decided I’m not allowed to edit the list until all items are resolved. This is not meant to be a neverending list, this is supposed to make me get shit done. Here are some things I actually completed due to my list:
- Got my car’s A/C Fixed
- Completed a fictional book (Last book I read for fun was in 2019!).
- Start a workout routine (that I’m still doing!)
- Update my resume
- Rearrange downstairs furniture
- Write something for this website (Yes, this was on the to do list!)
I’ve also made even more progress on my game, and progress on a fictional story I’m co-writing with my brother. These last two items are big, and sometimes it feels like too much for to do list dump. So I break it out into some smaller items, and do something toward that goal.
While the results have been rather pleasing, after a few months of this list it has been a bit anxiety inducing. I find many nights and weekends where I just want to zone out into a cool tv show, or play some games with friends. I’m still trying to find the right balance between productivity and burn out. I have a demanding job that often leaves me feeling brainfried and frazzled.
Instead of relenting on my to do list, I’m now trying to find activities that are more deeply recharging. I downloaded an app called Cold Turkey to help me block “low recharging, low effort” activities (coughsocial mediacough) and had a lot of success…when I keep the app on.