otterbyte juggles priorities

[otterbyte]

Jumping in mid-challenge. I'm going to throw down my basic goals for the month here and try not to fret about how disorganized I'm being (but secretly actually fretting about it).

 

I had some progress during the last challenge (going to Muay Thai 3x a week now, yay!) and some setbacks (screwed up my glute med so I can't do half the stuff I want to do, boo!). So I'm just going to maintain as much as I can of what I was already doing, with an emphasis on actually, you know, *achieving* the other goals. Mostly that means prioritizing because I suck at that and end up chasing after whatever shiny urgency flits across my field of view. Because productive procrastination is my forte!

 

too...many...rocks!!

 

Exercise

• Muay Thai 3x/week - this was achieved last challenge, I'm just going to keep it up.
• A little PT each day - because if I don't fix this &$^%# glute I can't *do* any round kicks, or slapping knees, or most of my conditioning drills for Muay Thai, so ya, I'm motivated.

Diet

• 6-8 glasses water a day - I don't really need food goal. I've been doing my tracking and protein and whatnot for so long it's second nature now. But I have slipped on hydration.

Life

• Coding - OMG I just need to do this already. 15 minutes a day. Which is a laughably small amount but I just need to kick my own butt into gear on this one. Priorities, people.
• Declutter - I need to toss, donate and sell stuff. Preferably sell, because the hubby and I have gotten serious about paying off our debt and have a plan in place. But every bit extra we can bring in helps.

 

And that's it. I'm going to keep cutting down the number of goals each challenge until I finally get a working baseline. I am a bit dense and it takes me a while to get the whole 'start small' thing, but eventually I'll beat my head against it long enough to drive the point home! 

[raptron]

Sounds like you are STARTING TO GET IT?!?! Maybe?! A little!? How much coding are you doing per day currently?

[otterbyte]

Usually none. I feel so guilty about what I haven’t been doing that it’s hard for me to face it at all. Which means I feel even more guilty, which just worsens the problem. So yeah, I spend a lot of time in the Dark Playground until the Panic Monster shows up. 

 

So this should be a huge priority for me. And it *is*, in my head, but my actions aren’t reflecting that. I need to make the mental shift so that getting this done is the first thing i schedule in my day, and that my day doesn’t end until it’s done. Even if it’s only 15 minutes. 

[otterbyte]

In good news however, @Bighara and I just completed our graduation class to get our gold belts in Muay Thai, and so I'm going to go fall down in bed now.

[@mu]

13 hours ago, otterbyte said:

So this should be a huge priority for me. And it *is*, in my head, but my actions aren’t reflecting that. I need to make the mental shift so that getting this done is the first thing i schedule in my day, and that my day doesn’t end until it’s done. Even if it’s only 15 minutes. 

What do you mean by coding?

Procrastination is a hard one to beat You can know the why and how, but it is still a bloody pain.

[otterbyte]

8 hours ago, @mu said:

What do you mean by coding?

Procrastination is a hard one to beat You can know the why and how, but it is still a bloody pain.

 

I do database programming in MS Access (which is VBA, which your hard core coders will scoff at, but after you learn to fake inheritance in it, you can do a lot of fun stuff)

 

The worst part? I *love* programming. That's why I do it, that's why I pushed my way through a ton of books and fora and all that yummy coding stuff. I guess a lot of it is I worry I'll crash against a coding problem I can't slay and then my impostor syndrome will overwhelm me... 

 

Brains are stupid, guys.  

[Manarelle]

21 hours ago, otterbyte said:

In good news however, @Bighara and I just completed our graduation class to get our gold belts in Muay Thai, and so I'm going to go fall down in bed now.

 

Congratulations! Brains are 100% stupid. Kick that slacker monkey out. You've got this. 

[@mu]

12 hours ago, otterbyte said:

I do database programming in MS Access (which is VBA, which your hard core coders will scoff at, but after you learn to fake inheritance in it, you can do a lot of fun stuff)

 

 It's still a field high in “mine is bigger than yours” sort of games and condescending BS at times.

 

12 hours ago, otterbyte said:

The worst part? I *love* programming. That's why I do it, that's why I pushed my way through a ton of books and fora and all that yummy coding stuff. I guess a lot of it is I worry I'll crash against a coding problem I can't slay and then my impostor syndrome will overwhelm me... 

 

What are you doing it for? is it a personal project to add to your skills? Or is it something work-related?

There is always a day where your brain is just not coming up with the most efficient solution, if any solution at all
Are you totally on your own (I read you were freelancing?) or in a team / group?

[otterbyte]

12 hours ago, @mu said:

What are you doing it for? is it a personal project to add to your skills? Or is it something work-related?

There is always a day where your brain is just not coming up with the most efficient solution, if any solution at all
Are you totally on your own (I read you were freelancing?) or in a team / group?

 

I'm a one-person, one-client business. The guys I work for are amazing clients, they pay right away and they are endlessly patient with my schedule. I will say that the work I do for them is good; I won't let a shoddy piece of code stand and I hate forcing users to work around crappy functionality or UI. Also, I undercharge. Both because I appreciate the guys I do work for, and because I feel so guilty about my lack of reliable output. When I'm on top of things, I put in 30-40 hours a month, when I'm spinning out in a denial/shame spiral, I'm lucky to get 10.  

 

I just need to keep applying the lessons I learned when I  changed my eating habits and started working on fitness...that starting is hard, but never as hard as I imagine it will be, and that the rewards feel amazing. I have been a lifelong procrastinator (much longer than I've been a poor eater or in poor physical shape) so I have a deep hole to climb out of, step by step. And it is way too easy to get distracted by shiny objects and cat videos.

 

[raptron]

Definitely a step-by-step process. I got you. Are you trying any positive incentives for your daily coding this time around? Might help more than trying to power through by the sheer power of shame.