It's a very tough choice

The Picard Maneuver@lemmy.world to ADHD memes@lemmy.dbzer0.com – 850 points –
54

Here's the thing. If there's a 1% chance that the task will no longer be necessary by the time it's due, I can't afford to risk wasting the time to complete the task. Much better idea to spend that time in stress-paralysis until there is a 100% certainty of the task being necessary.

Wait, are the rest of you feeling accomplished after finishing tasks?

Exactly: do the task, feel either nothing or like a fraud depending on if it meets your self-imposed ludicrous standard.

Or find all the flaws after the fact, and feel bad for not doing a perfect job.

You'll never get it perfect, so I found it useful to reframe it as aiming to get as close as possible to perfect then giving yourself a fair critique so you kniw how to get closer next time. It's sort of Zeno's perfection paradox. You get closer each time, but never actually get there.

Yeah. That's the source of suffering. At some point your bar for good enough is so high nothing brings you joy and all your past "accomplishments" bring you pain.

I can't say that I feel my past accomplishments bring me pain, each was as well done as I knew how, and brought me new knowledge, which is quite rewarding. The bar doesn't raise beyond reach either, as you already know how to go as far as you have, and you've hopefully learnt a little more. You're not always going to achieve your best results, but that's where critiquing your performance comes in. You can inevitably learn something from it.

I don't think that's really a thing. It's just a ruse to try to convince you to do more stuff.

It's like that "you feel great after running for an hour". Well I ran every other day for six months, I never felt anything other than sore and sweaty. It's all lies.

See, for me, exercise is one of the few reliable ways to actually get those feel-good brain juices.

So you're part of the conspiracy.

I love to go for insanely long walks - when I'm walking. When I'm not walking I refuse to leave the house. I am deeply suspicious of who this xmunk clone that takes over whenever I'm walking is.

Oh, no, running sucks. I lift weights, commute by bicycle, and dance until I drop.

I use a bicycle too. I have done so for the last thirty years. Because it's a convenient way to get around.

I wouldn't even dream of lifting weights though. Even if I was paid for it. That's the weirdest idea ever. Maybe if I was starving.

Did you properly stretch, warm up, cool down, and stretch again? If you're still sore after 6 months, either your form is off or you have a medical issue. Can't help you on the sweaty thing. That's why I prefer to swim/surf

I was more tired than sore, to be honest. The main point is that I never got to a point where I felt good about running. It was always a chore. After a while I gave up on it because I just hated it.

Nowadays I just walk because at least I can take in the scenery, stop to look at stuff, look at birds, take pictures and whatever.

Those times when I've achieved runners high it was when I pushed myself to carry a heavier load, and walk faster. Never during endurance training.

I would feel my legs burn and there's a temptation to slow down, but that was the signal to forge on commit to walking faster.

At the time I had a very specific motivation for walking, and I wish I hadn't stopped walking when that motivation was gone. It's hard to start up again.

I typically complete a task to then immediately jump onto the next thing.

I remember while being rewarded for a job well done, I didn't hear a single thing because I was mentally trying to solve the next problem.

nah just exhaustion. but I get that from not doing the task too

FUCK. I REALLY HAVE TO DO MY FUCKING TAXES. ARG.... maybe after this round of league.

May you get horrible team mates until you quit from frustration and end up doing your taxes because you're bored.

My accountant had a deadline for submitting things and I was stressing as the day got near. I double checked and I remembered the day wrong and it was a little later.

What did I do?

Got it in on the last day lol

For anyone suffering from constantly falling into Option 2, my solution for the past decade has been pomodoro timers (30 mins of music).

Once I hear the music, I just focus.

Then the music stops, my brain and focus stops. I either relax, procrastinate, or restart the timer.

You are assuming that I can't decide to do option 1, when i am just sitting there fully aware of needing to do it and just frozen emotionally by the idea of doing something that could be difficult.(even if it could be easy)

This is so me... "Start to think about it, not sure how to start, brain 'slides off' it, do something else"...

If I can get a hook into it, I can move onwards (even a task list is good)...

Then again, as I get older, I'm feeling even less motivated than usual and it's harder to get on with things.

Sometimes, the more I know, the more I overthink how much I have to do for the "best" outcome. I also do take pleasure watching some YouTube videos on extreme precision crafting or metalworks.

What about contemplating uprooting your entire life and going into the forest to live as a hermit?

There’s no feeling accomplished.

There is only regret that I didn't do the other things I could have done

They wouldn’t even test me for ADHD (β€œit’s probably something else”), but so much this.

I have this but only for difficult stuff I am struggling with is that normal?

I think it's pretty normal to view some tasks as "free" mentally and be able to do them without stress. I rarely hit that trap when it comes to cooking - as an example - I think in part because I was raised in an environment where it was fun and improvisation was encouraged. I suspect what we all consider as free has really complex factors though and will vary wildly.

I don't even get the 'feel accomplished' part of tasks when I do them on time. Makes it real hard to convince myself to do things, I tell you hwat

From what I understand, our brains lack that ability to different extents. It was explained that this "reward" pathway being broken is one of the reasons why our minds assign a lower priority to different tasks and making something routine is so difficult.

For me, I need to do the first thing in my schedule "right" or else my day is ruined and I lost the motivation to do anything properly.

If you do option 1, there will just be more when you would have done option 2.

Option 1 doesn't even exists for me. The feeling of accomplishment only comes after option 2. ☹️

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!