Have you ever had a project that you put off because it's so big or seems so complicated that it totally overwhelms you? Every time you look at it or even think about it your heart goes to the bottom of your feet, your eyes cross and you feel exhausted already?
I want to share a simple solution from the life example of my father. He had taken a job as the president of a college and had moved across several states. His new house had a finished basement and he chose a room down there to be his home office. Because my father is a lifelong researcher in order to be a well-informed teacher he has tons and tons of books and other resources stored in his home office. Now all of this collection was piled high in boxes all over his room. Just looking at it all would have made me run upstairs and close the basement door forever.
But he handled it this way. He would come home from a tiring day at the college and ask my mother how long until supper was ready. Usually, the answer was 15 minutes. Now, most men would have sat in the recliner and watched the news giving themselves a break from their hard day of work. But, my father went downstairs and used the 15 minutes to see how many boxes he could unload and put away. When supper was ready his day was done and he let himself rest. The boxes began to disappear and in a very short time, his home office was completely set up for his use.
15 minutes is a time segment that most people can face. When 15 minutes is up you are done with that project for today. You can even make a game out of seeing each day if you can beat your record. I also found as I practiced this 15-minute exercise that I would sometimes get on a roll and suddenly realize I had spent half an hour on a project I had wanted totally to avoid. Now some projects take setups, so figure out how you can set it up and leave it that way so it's ready for your 15 minutes tomorrow. You can do that! You're smart! You know you are! 15 minutes of success makes you feel relieved and hopeful. Soon the project will be done!