This is something that’s been frustrating me to no end recently as I’ve had a ton of time over the holidays to do whatever I want. I have a dozen half beaten games and half watched tv shows that I really should just finish but idk why I just can’t stick to one thing until it’s done and then move on to the next like a normal person.
It’s because:
start of thing == dopamine
finish of thing != dopamine
We yearn for the brain juice and hop from hit to hit
Neurotypical people do not have this issue, I’m told
Yes, and it’s an absolute TORTURE. I can’t say I have any good advice other than maybe trying to structure things so you are forced to get around to it. Or just embrace the fact that you’re flighty and jump from one thing to another. Anyways, I should stop scrolling lemmy and finish that book I started last month.
that I really should finish
That word “should” is a tricky little fella, he implies a judgement, the question is what’s the source of that judgement?
Wayne Dyer discusses the issues and challenges of words like “should” in his book “Your Erroneous Zones” by using a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy approach: examining and rewriting how we think about things.
When I find myself using that particular word, I ask myself “should, according to who?”. Almost always I find I have an old “script” in my head about priorities, values, etc, that upon re-examining I find it’s no longer useful. Like “I bought this game, therefore I must get maximum value from it”.
Sometimes things run their course, and that’s that.
Well that’s peak ADHD for you right there. New thing=dopamin. No dopamine any more = abandoned projektets. My best advice is to pick something that you can keep itterating on infinitely and keep interesting. For instance i like making smoothies and its something you can vary for ever and never run out of recipes to try. Basically food is a good hobby because there’s so much to learn from the entire world
For gaming something like Minecraft can be fun because infinitely projects, but maybe harder to stay motivated.
3d printing is also good because there’s something new constantly.
I find when I get like this I have to give it a bit of a rest for a bit. I figure either I’ve blown out my dopamine receptors to the point of non functionality, or I just need to rest. I find that only doing a small handful of things at a time helps not get in this state, easier said than done though.
I just keep 5-10 projects and rotate between them.
Same! Books, games, new skill/hobby, new exercise. I will always have a minimum of 3 of those and rotate between them. It’s like an infinite dopamine hack.
Exactly! And eventually it gets the job done too. As a bonus.
