Tuesday, February 22, 2011

The Paralysis of Possibilities

by Lynne of cozycottagecreations

Does this ever happen to you? You're chugging along getting things done and come to a point where there are so many things on your list you find it impossible to decide what to tackle next. So, like a deer in headlights, you stare at your list... then take a nap. I call this phenomenon (which, to me, is different than procrastination) the Paralysis of Possibilities. I'm at the point in my life where my To Do list, daily, has more things on it than I could possibly do in a day. There are definite "Must Dos", but there are also tons of other items that, although important, don't have the same urgency. I've had to devise a fun way to stay motivated and get those little things accomplished.

The Paralysis of Possibilities happens when you've already accomplished the "Must Do's", you have a finite amount of time (say an hour), and eight (or so) things on your list all of equal importance/urgency. I keep a bowl in the kitchen with little folded up pieces of paper numbered one through eight. So, instead of heading for the couch, I number my list 1-8 and pick a paper out of the bowl. That's right, I leave it up to randomness to decide what's going to get checked off my list next. It might sound silly, but there's something about that randomness that keeps me going. I stay more focused on what I need to accomplish so that I can cross something as of yet unknown off my list. This strategy also works well when you can't decide what item for the shop to make next. Sometimes I want to make 10 different things (well, that's all the time, actually). Instead of fret over the decision, I leave it up to randomness, and the funny thing is, it's usually the perfect choice.

So, in the spirit of random fun, I leave you with an item from one of our members, randomly selected of course: a really cool bookplate from cricicis

2 comments :

  1. I love this idea! I am going to try it. You never know what could happen

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  2. I can completely identify with this problem Lynne! I will try your numbers in a bowl technique :) Thanks for the idea!

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