The Desperation Cycle And Failing Motivation
It's a problem that most people have experienced at one point or another in their lives. It starts out with the excitement of a new idea, the thrill of finally getting to work on it - but then you have to wake up and actually do it. The problem is, time goes by and you don't do anything about your idea because it's difficult or intimidating to think about all the work that needs to be done.
After a while, the idea starts to seem like more and more of a brick wall in your way. Procrastination only perpetuates the problem and makes you feel worse about yourself. You forget why you started working on the idea in the first place, and start wondering what's wrong with you for not getting it done.
This is known as The Desperation Cycle. There have been many analyses of why this happens (Ariely, Duhigg, etc) but I am going to focus on why it happens mentally rather than physically. It starts with being locked into an old way of thinking about your problem.
In my last blog post I talked about how to reframe your problem so that it doesn't seem so daunting. The classic example is that you want to write a book; however, when you really think about what it will take to actually get it done, the thought of everything that needs to be done makes you want to do anything else other than write the book.
The next step in The Desperation Cycle is failing motivation. When you're blocked, your motivation plummets and eventually there's a point where you give up on your idea entirely. The lower your motivation gets, the higher the work barrier feels and the less likely you are to even attempt working on it again.
This cycle has a few harmful effects. The first is that it prevents you from working on your project at all. If the idea is on your mind and you feel like you have to work on it, then that means you don't have the motivation to do so.
The second effect is much worse, though; if you're not working on your project, then there's no chance of completion and thus no chance of success. This can have an extremely negative effect on your confidence levels as well as any self-esteem that may be tied in with the project (if it's a work-related project).
The final problem with this cycle is that most people don't even know they're in it until it's too late. They think they have time to work on the idea, but it's too hard to think about the work involved in getting it done. To avoid this cycle, you need to know what's going on underneath your head and find a way of breaking out of its grip.
How do you break out of The Desperation Cycle? It definitely does take some discipline, but I want to keep it simple and practical. A few ways are:
1) Find an important reason for working on it. If you don't have that reason, then how can you form any motivation to do so? Try thinking about something extraordinary that will come from completing the project . For example, if you're trying to find a cure for cancer, then that might be convincing. What would you do after you finish the project? Why would it be important to complete it?
2) Break down the project into chunks of sub-goals. If your project is too large, break down its parts into smaller, more manageable chunks and work on them individually. Don't think about the whole project at once; that's overwhelming and makes it harder to stay motivated (hence why most people don't try making a dent in their projects at all). Break down your goals into manageable pieces and focus on one piece at a time.
3) Make a game out of it . Make it fun, make it challenging and don't take it too seriously. Think of your project like a game. See if you can beat the level before time runs out and see how many points you get. If you're trying to find a cure for cancer, then try reaching the goal of preventing another case of cancer before the year 3025 .
4) Don't procrastinate . This is one of the hardest ways to do it, but you need to just think about your work approach from beginning to end. If there's something in particular that needs doing, just do it immediately; if not, then write yourself an immediate task list and do whatever is on it (whether or not there will be other things later on). When you complete a task, cross it off the list. And then take a break.
I'm sure there are many more ways to break out of The Desperation Cycle, but I think these four rules are the most important and will have the largest impact on getting you out of it. If you're feeling stuck in this cycle, give my suggestions a try and see what happens!
If you liked this post, please share it with your friends! If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them as well. I'm always excited to hear from other people and talk about these kinds of things, so don't be afraid to contact me!
Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a great day!
Posted by Kevin Brittingham at 8:05 AM No comments: Links to this post
Hi everyone! My name is Kevin Brittingham and I'm one of the Co-Presidents of the SFI Society . I had the idea for this blog because I thought it would be a great way to help promote the Society and get everyone excited about their projects. There should be a lot of interesting things going on in the Society this year and I can't wait to see where they lead.
My personal goal for this blog is to promote SFI and the ideas of Singularity, but I would also like to talk about the general theme of transhumanism that ties it all together. Those seem like they'd be interesting topics to discuss, or at least I think they'll be a good way to get people involved and talking. I've been interested in this stuff for a long time, so I think I have something to say about it.
But anyway, that's enough from me for now. I'll try to make this blog a great place to keep up with what's going on and keep everyone in the loop.
Conclusion:
Throughout this blog, I've used a few different examples to illustrate the points I'm making. However, I can't seem to find the pictures on my computer. I searched through my laptop hard drive and could not find them; so, if you see any photos that aren't credited let me know and I'll recreate them.
If you see anything wrong in this post or think it could be improved in anyway, let me know!
Until next time!
-Brittingham/Brent- Enjoy your life -Passionately.