Task Avoidance
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[00:00:00] Hey friends, welcome back to the NeuroTribe.
So grateful to have all of you here.
Today, we're gonna have a little fun, a little wit about task paralysis or analysis paralysis.
So let's dive in. Dear Brain, I have too many tasks to do.
In fact, there's so many tasks that I've been putting off for the last few days, my brain just decided to shut down.
Instead, I took a nap.
I watched a movie, ran some errands, did anything and everything but my tasks that I needed to do.
Okay, Brain. Every time I even think about these tasks, I want to run, hide, literally go to sleep.
I don't wanna do any of them at all.[00:01:00]
Part of the problem, I have to admit, is there are so many, I just don't know where to start.
So, please do tell me what to do.
Or I guess I could go on the internet or social media, any platform whatsoever, and try and figure out, how do I get out of this?
I'm stuck.
All right, friends.
Seriously, this happens all the time.
It happens to me, happens to you. It happens to your neighbor down the street.
It happens to all of us, and it's okay.
I like to say: if you've got so many tasks and you just don't know what to do, and every single time you think about doing the task, you get completely overwhelmed and then you end up scrolling social media or [00:02:00] taking a shower or taking a nap, or binge watching a show, or watching a movie, or going and running errands or anything and everything, but starting a task.
I feel you. I so do.
I love you all 'cause we all do it.
Sometimes it helps just to figure out what is the task that you like or enjoy the most and start there.
Maybe it helps you to start with the easiest task, get a couple of really good wins, and then start to trickle in some of those that feel maybe like you're wanting to avoid.
What can happen is when you get those quick wins of the tasks that you enjoy doing or are more enjoyable of the larger project, that can be so helpful.
It gets that dopamine up.
You start feeling good.
And you just kind of get in the work mode.
So it really does help you [00:03:00] get from task to task.
Me personally, when I am in that space, I can draw the space out for a few days.
However, once I get into the tasks. I'm like monotropic.
I will start pounding out all different kinds of projects and tasks and get through my outlines or get through my never ending to-do list.
I mean, it's never ending, so it's never actually over, but I will get a lot done in one sitting, true to ADHD nature.
It feels good.
But then I also know when I complete so many tasks, I need some downtime after.
I need some structured downtime.
Whether it's I'm being graceful to myself and I'm ordering dinner and the kids get all happy 'cause they get burgers tonight.
Or it's: I go to bed early to be able to get really good rest.
And [00:04:00] for me, really good rest is nine, 10 hours, and I wake up feeling better again.
There can be kind of a hangover after that.
And so giving myself lighter tasks the next day can be helpful.
Scheduling in a lighter client day can be helpful.
Another thing is sometimes just biting the bullet and being okay with yourself of:
"I am avoiding these tasks. I'm gonna feel that for a second and I'm gonna honor that for a second, because this is what my nervous system is used to." Right?
My nervous system is used to putting it off and putting it off and putting it off until now we've got an end date and it's coming near.
And then we kind of white knuckle it through to get past the project date or turn in the whatever, or produce the whatever or put it out there.
Whatever [00:05:00] your line of work is, or maybe even it's at home.
Maybe it's emailing the teachers.
Or it's cleaning a certain room.
, I've done that myself where I've looked away from a closet and not looked at it at all because I did not, not want to face the task of cleaning said closet in the hallway. Right?
And so the other thing that can be helpful in that instant is finding something that you really, really, really like.
So for me, I will love to body double in the form of listening to an audio book or a podcast that I'm really into.
So, I'll turn on my headset and listen to the audio book or listen to a podcast that I'm really interested in.
And I'll knock that closet out and I'll get it done in [00:06:00] one day.
That feels really good to me.
There are some clients that I work with that the idea of doing the whole thing in one sitting is too much.
And so they break it up a bit to break it down.
Fun thing is a lot of the clients that I work with are within the membership, within the NeuroTribe membership or the Neuro Tribe Twenties LaunchPad.
Coming soon, the Neuro Tribe Teens Edition.
And what you can do if you have a really hard time starting work or continuing to work, what could be so helpful is coworking sessions.
And so what my clients in the memberships will do is they'll log on, they'll go into the community, they'll announce to everybody that they're doing coworking hours and they'll start the camera or start up in a session within the membership, and then other people can come and [00:07:00] join and you'll have. 2, 5, 10 people coworking at a time.
Anytime. So it can be. Two o'clock in the afternoon or two o'clock in the morning.
And that can be helpful for those that maybe their circadian rhythm is different, right?
Or maybe they live in Europe, they live in Portugal.
So it, it's very nice to have that open and freedom and community where everybody gets to come together, support each other, and we can either cowork or body-double together.
Another thing that my crew does is, if say someone is coaching and there's nothing in particular that they want to be coached on that day, they just wanna sit and listen and be supported in that way, then a lot of time they'll just turn off their camera and their mic and they will work while coaching sessions are on.
So, finding a community like that can be helpful.
Or maybe [00:08:00] buddy with a friend.
Or come join us in the NeuroTribe, we'd love to have you.
So, if you are in that state where you have worked so hard and you've worked through a lot of the analysis paralysis.
Or you have worked through the: "Okay, I have so many things to do, I just don't know where to start. And now I don't wanna start anything at all. So, I'm just going to close my eyes and pick one."
But then you still can't seem to make yourself to do it.
It's okay.
You're not the only one.
You can do as much personal development as you want, and you can work on this as many times as you can.
You can go in and out of being really good about it.
And maybe some things in life is happening right now.
Maybe there's a little bit more stress than usual.
Or maybe you're not getting enough sleep.
Or maybe you're having a really ADHD day.
[00:09:00] Whatever it is that your neuro complexity is, is working on right now.
It doesn't mean that you haven't progressed, if you're having a day where, or several, where you just can't seem to get yourself to start the task.
It's okay.
Come and join us.
We love you.
We've got a place that you belong and a community that will lift you up and support you.
I love you all. Take care.
Bye-bye.
Hey friends, thank you so much for joining me today. If you got an aha moment. I would absolutely love to hear from you. Please like, subscribe, comment, and share. If you want to be part of an amazing group of neurodivergent human beings and share some of the love and the magic in a community where you belong, that's safe and nonjudgmental, click the link below and join our neuro [00:10:00] Tribe community today.
Love you all. Take care. Bye.
