i’m a human and i watch netflix just like everyone else. i also wander away from my desk to do one thing and do six more and forget the thing i meant to do, and eat a whole bag of chips before i notice that i had more than a handful.
we all do things on autopilot - or we keep doing things without making a conscious decision to do them. it’s actually really hard to do something on purpose.
especially right now. when we’re stressed, and who isn’t, it makes it easier to be doing things in zombieland, and then boom, it’s may.
so i keep coming back to one of my foundational life rules - do it on purpose.
(i talk about this a lot on the podcast season i did with dr. katie linder - coach to coach!)
if you’re going to watch netflix, really watch it. close your computer, get some snacks, get a blanket, watch every frame.
if you’re going to nap, do it in your bed on your on your couch rather than just dozing off at your desk.
if you’re going to eat some chips, put them in a bowl and enjoy them! savor them! be present for them!
if you’re going to do emails - set some time aside and put all your attention on that task, rather than just mindlessly refreshing your inbox all day and not doing the work you need to.
and if you catch yourself in autopilot - i’m there so much during the day! - then you can recenter and ask:
am i doing this on purpose?
rest feels more restful when you commit to it, instead of just working at 20% and hoping that you feel rested at the end.
work will feel more focused and efficient if you’re doing tasks on purpose, with all your energy focused like a laser beam on it - even if it only lasts for 15 minutes!
and when we continually check in with our intentionality, it becomes much easier to see the traps we set for ourselves, the beliefs we’ve inherited that don’t benefit us.
are you watching netflix in the background as you write because you’re so tired that the only way you could convince yourself to sit down at your workspace is to have your media friends on in the background? why not actually watch, and actually rest, and then try again in a few hours?
are you trying to work but doing so in a place and time that really isn’t set up to help you thrive? do you need to make some changes - block twitter, hide your phone, close your email tab - so that it’s easier to do what you want to do?
there’s no bad or wrong thing to do. everyone needs to rest. everyone needs to answer their emails. everyone needs to get their writing done. but if you’re going to do it, do it on purpose - because when we snap into the autopilot, our programming might not be lining up with what we need to do, or the condition we’re actually in. doing things on purpose lets us tune into what we’re actually working with in the moment, so that we can make changes if we need to.