Did Instead

Third full day without signing on to X, FB, or Reddit.  I am accessing my email less, but still more than the three times a day anticipated.  

I did my usual activities, those things I would have done anyway without a social media restriction. Up on time, treadmill on time, on-site OLLI session in the morning, Zoom session in the afternoon.  I had a decent lunch.  Made a trip to Trader Joe's for a minimum of things.  I'd have done all of these and still engaged in my usual allotment of social media.

The purpose, though, was to focus on things that had been neglected.  After my OLLI class, I began to tackle the final section of the main bathroom closet.  I did not time the effort.  Some minor sorting.  Things that go to the basement, things that go first level.  Plastic bags are now inside a single plastic bag.  Very little discarded.  Two large bags of health and grooming supplies that will need sorting.  Finished the book I was reading, the third of three in this semi-annual project, the one on a Jewish theme from a bound book.  I began composing an article on Loneliness.  Target 900 words, edited and submitted for publication.  Sometimes you just have to start.  About 300 words, most not worthy of appearing in print for strangers to read.  Really, not that much progress.

I made a list of the Daily Tasks that I am most likely to make excuses to languish.  Most still languish.  I did a good job reading, though.  Tackling two very long articles in The Atlantic, two difficult ones in The Forward.  I would like to comment on one or two of them as Letters.  And I still have time before I make a semi-special supper.  I also feel pretty decent, which will enable me to work some after supper.  

Focus remains a challenge.  There are some articles on how to improve this.  It will take more than just eliminating a common distraction like social media.

Working with a Timer

My attention span, which has always been paltry, seems to have really tanked.  Yesterday, I undertook some things I really wanted to do: write an essay, sort papers on the family room couch, exercise on the treadmill, create a psycho-path to make navigation in my bedroom safer, make macaroni & cheese for supper, attend an Osher lecture.  Some have set durations, like cooking continues until it is done or a class has a fixed duration even if my fidgeting diverts me to check e-mail or FB posts while the Zoom session continues.  Others are better done by deciding in advance how long I want to spend, then setting the timer for that duration.  Treadmill always goes to completion, as the countdown offers landmarks.  Tidying and writing just could not engage me for more than a fraction of the interval dedicated to it. For the paper sorting I got frustrated quickly and abandoned the task.  For the bedroom I did better, not completing the duration but satisfied with what I did.  For the writing, I set an hour, lasted about a third of that using the library's timer, but just ran out of thoughts to keep me in synch with the outline that I had successfully placed before pursuing text.  

Some productivity experts recommend a Five Minute Rule, setting a timer for that interval, starting the project, then deciding whether to continue or abandon.  I usually last more than five minutes, so that may be worth a try, at least to avoid the procrastination that results in not pursuing an initiative at all.