Set a time limit
Setting a time limit for an activity should be a strategic choice. Two examples:
1: I like to be active.
I like to walk, bike, swim, run, lift weights, and play team sports. These activities are good for my physical health. These activities are an opportunity to create and tighten social bonds. These activities allow my mind to be in the moment and not actively think about any project I am working on at the moment. This does not mean that doubling my time being active will give me double the results. Since I am not a professional athlete, these activities do not pay the bills. Setting a time limit forces me to make every minute count. To strategically get the most out of being active but not indulge in too much, I have to set a limit and stop.
2: I have to do (some) hard things.
Doing hard things is rarely fun at the moment. I struggle; I’m confronted with what I do not know or can not do yet. I have to persevere. I have to do things that make me feel uncomfortable. In the long run, doing hard things pays off. I’ll expand my knowledge and skillset and can leverage it in different situations. Setting a time limit on doing hard things forces me to show up and do the hard work anyway. I aim for small doses of hard work done daily over long periods. To strategically get the most out of doing hard things, I have to do something daily; I have to set a limit to start.
Example 1 might require me to set a time alarm to stop. Example 1 can be used as a reward.
Example 2 requires a start- and stop alarm. Example 2 can benefit from having a simple calendar to check off my daily contribution. Example 2 might benefit from a clear goal like: “I’ll do this work to be able to get that result.” I’ll probably aim to do the hard work at the beginning of my day when I have not yet made thousands of decisions and choices and still have most of my willpower. I can build a ritual (make the coffee, sit down at the same spot, listen to the same playlist of songs) to start doing my hard work daily. I can prepare this task in advance and make it easy to start.
