What to Do When You Can’t Get Started

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You arrive at the office, sit down at your desk, and are all set to work. You have a million things to do, and lots of important things, but most are all head-hurters, and you just can’t get started.  

The good news is that you are the boss and you are in charge, so you can dig into whatever you want to. 

The bad news is that today you just feel, well… stuck. Nothing is going to be super easy to just check off your list, nothing looks fun, and actually, there is nothing on your list you feel like doing. 

So you think…

Do I need a vacation? No, I just had one last month.

Is there something super bad happening in my life right now that’s got me down? Am I depressed? Not really, in fact, today looks a whole lot like yesterday. 

So why do you feel stuck today?

Who knows? It could be a million different reasons. But instead of focusing on the problem, let’s look at my easy solutions to get unstuck.

How to get unstuck

Step 1: List everything you should be doing.

Go through everything on your list, in your email, and make a new, separate list of things you could do right now. 

Step 2: Pick something – anything. 

While conventional wisdom says to pick the most important thing and start there, sometimes it feels better to pick a few of the easier things so you can cross a few things off your list. 

Either way, just pick something.  

Step 3: Just do it.

This is the hard part, especially today when you are feeling stuck. But don’t despair. I have a couple of secret tools I am going to share with you that help me when I am in this place.

I have selected what I am going to work on and it’s sitting there staring me in the face. But I have no energy or desire to do it. Remember, today I am stuck and have the blahs!

With the tools I am going to share with you below, you will be able to go right from one thing to the next, and before you know it, you will be all caught up.

The tools

Tool #1: Focus at Will

Focus at Will is a music service that is basically background music that helps you focus. It’s NOT your regular music playlist on your favorite music streaming platform.  

The whole purpose of this music is to help you focus. I don’t know how it works, I just know that it does.

If you go to their website, they talk all about the science of why it works. I’m not sure how much real science is involved here, and I really don’t care. All I know is that I turn it on and I can focus and work better. 

There are several different focus music categories you can choose from. I found one in particular that works for me called “The Drop”. But you will need to explore and find what works best for you.  

Check it out here: focusatwill.com.

Tool #2: Time Cube

OK, if you thought listening to random background music to focus was dumb, wait till you hear about this next one!

A time cube is a small plastic cube with numbers on it. You turn the cube over to the number of minutes you want – and that’s it. The timer will go off after that set period of time. I usually set it for 60 minutes at a time.

You say:
Jeff! That’s the dumbest thing I have ever heard! My cell phone has a timer on it, a clock on the wall, an Apple watch, and a hundred timers I can use on the internet. Why in the world would I use this dumb block that looks like a kid's toy?

I say:
I don’t know. The time cube just works, and none of the things you just mentioned work for me. Furthermore, the timers you mentioned don’t work for you either. If they did, you wouldn’t be reading this!

When you turn over the time cube, it’s like you are turning over control of your time to the cube. You no longer have any say as to what you are going to do next. The time cube is now the boss. You can’t look at your email, text your friends, or go spend time on social media. The time cube is in control and watching you!  

For some reason, the time cube helps you focus 100% of your energy on the task at hand, and you will get it done. 

Something funny happens to me almost every time I use the time cube. Remember when I started, I was hopelessly unfocused? When that timer goes off, I am usually so focused and into my task that I am almost mad at it:

SHUT UP TIMER!

Can’t you see that I am totally engaged in this task!!!

To get your own Time Cube, go to Amazon and search: “Time Cube”. There are different types with different time intervals available.

Now you have a game plan and a couple of new tools to use when you get stuck. As with everything, while these techniques work for me, your mileage may vary.

Good luck and tell me if this works for you!

Disclaimer: I am not connected with either of these companies or products, and if you decide to use these tools, I will not be compensated in any way.