398: Break things down
Things always take so much longer than we think they will and today we're diving into why and what you can do about it!
Episode transcript:
Good morning, Daily Peppers, and a very happy Thursday to you. So yesterday here on the daily pack, we were diving into this idea that not everyone is motivated all the time. And if you're struggling to get yourself motivated, that's okay and you're actually in the same boat with a whole load of us. And today, I really wanna dive into something that I think can really trip us up when getting shit done. And that is just how big the tasks on our to do list are. Now as I'm sitting recording this, there's a guy over the road, and he is putting up a sign to rent for the house opposite ours. And I thought we could just use this as an example of how we need to actually start recording our tasks and giving ourselves jobs to do. Now it would be so easy to just have that as one task on your to do list.
Put up to rent sign on house. But when we start to break that down, there are so many bits and pieces in there. First of all, the sign needs to be ordered, then it has to be delivered, then somebody needs to be assigned to go and take the sign and put it up. And then you have the actual process of putting the sign up and making sure it stays up and also making sure you chose the right bloody house. Now as we can see from one seemingly simple task, there's quite a bit of logistics in that in terms of making sure things are at the right place at the right time and just organizing to have it done. And I bet if you'd look at your to do list and the things that you need to do, there are also things like that on there. There are all these multistep tasks that we just put down as this one thing, And then we wonder why it takes us longer than we think it does to do them, and we start to beat ourselves up about it. When the truth is is that they were always gonna take longer than we thought.
And by having it as just one task on your to do list, it just makes it seem deceptively simple and can kind of set us up for failure and to beat ourselves up. So I know we have all heard this before, but you really need to start looking at what you have got to do and breaking it down into the micro tasks that sit into that and start from there instead. And what you might well find is that you've been beating yourself for for not being able to do the thing, but it's actually a lot bigger than you thought it was, and it's gonna take a lot longer. And you might also end up being that bit more compassionate to yourself. So whatever is on your plate right now, I really encourage you to try and extract all of the tasks from that one thing on your to do list and start from there instead. Not only is it gonna be more realistic for you, it's also gonna be so much kinder to you, and you're also more likely to get the thing done. So try it on for size, give it a go, see how it fits for you, and I'll be back with you tomorrow as always.
Episode transcript automatically produced by Castmagic.io
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A short, snappy and sassy daily podcast to keep your internal - and external - dreamshitters at bay!
The Daily Pep! is the rebel-rousing, daily podcast for couragemakers, creative, multi-passionate and unconventional women.
If you’re surrounded by people who don’t get who you are or what you do, if you want reminders you’re on the right path (no matter how scary it feels), or you’re sick of being your very own worst enemy, this is the podcast for you.
Every weekday, your host - writer, coach and professional rebel-rouser - Meg Kissack helps you build a creative and wholehearted life, one day at a time. Through short and snappy insights, reminders and stories, The Daily Pep! is here to remind you you’re not alone, and that everything changes when you believe you matter. Each episode is short and snappy, designed to fit in with (or help you start) your habits and routines
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