I often find myself in a similar cycle of procrastination, where the fear of commitment to a potential solution for anything worthwhile stems from the fear of failing at perfection. The only way to "finish" a project that I'm involved in is to have a very critical deadline that forces my attention to the most impactful decisions.
When I try to set personal deadlines, I end up always underestimating the duration of a task because I can never concentrate my effort to complete a single task at a given time. Instead, I find other problems that need attention, then more and more, until I end up with a stress bomb attached to my chest with a piercing beep that gets louder and louder until I just close my eyes, where it's quiet and I can think. Here I can think about how to address the problem, where it's coming from, hell - maybe even solve it.
Sometimes this proves helpful and leads to aha moments. More often than not, however, it takes me down a path of setting it aside - of giving up. A problem that can be solved in minutes by actually trying potential solutions instead of just thinking about them ends up lasting weeks.
When I realize the direction I'm headed, and the potential consequences of my decision-making, I refer to a quote that serves as a motivating factor that blinds the fear of failure - temporarily.
"The best way to finish an unpleasant task is to get started."
When I try to set personal deadlines, I end up always underestimating the duration of a task because I can never concentrate my effort to complete a single task at a given time. Instead, I find other problems that need attention, then more and more, until I end up with a stress bomb attached to my chest with a piercing beep that gets louder and louder until I just close my eyes, where it's quiet and I can think. Here I can think about how to address the problem, where it's coming from, hell - maybe even solve it.
Sometimes this proves helpful and leads to aha moments. More often than not, however, it takes me down a path of setting it aside - of giving up. A problem that can be solved in minutes by actually trying potential solutions instead of just thinking about them ends up lasting weeks.
When I realize the direction I'm headed, and the potential consequences of my decision-making, I refer to a quote that serves as a motivating factor that blinds the fear of failure - temporarily.
"The best way to finish an unpleasant task is to get started."