Doing the things that aren't mandatory

[WillToPower]

Hi all,

 

My biggest struggle at the moment is that I have a hard time doing the things that I don't "need" to do: I do my school work, I go to the research labs and volunteer, I go to work and do everything that needs to be done while I'm there, and I have finally started to build good habits. It's everything else, the things that are optional or for fun, that I struggle with. I put these things off, either because "I can do it later" or "I don't have to do it now".

 

One notable example: I bought a high-quality mouse for the purposes of making post-processing my photographs easier. I got it in the mail over a week ago and have yet to open it, let alone test it out. It's still in the box, sitting on my table. Sure, I haven't really done any photography work or post-processing work recently, but I feel like I should.

 

That's the thing: I feel like I "Should" do these things, but I don't "Need" to do them.

 

Does anybody have any advice as to how I can make myself do these things that I would like to do, but don't?

[JPrev]

Guess there are two parts to this.  One, are things like post-processing what you really want to do be doing, or are there other hobbies that resonate more with you?  Two, do you feel too spent after the day's work?

[WillToPower]

Sorry for having taken so long to respond.

 

I'll answer the second question first. Whether or not I feel spent will often depend on the day. I'll use yesterday as an example: I had a 9:30-12 class and a 12:15-3:00 volunteer shift, until I got roped into covering for one of my co-workers from 4pm-7pm; I had to leave the lab early to hurry home to get rid of some of my stuff, get my work gear, and get food, only to head right back to work. Suffice to say that I got nothing done when I got nothing done for the rest of the night.

 

As for the post-processing question, I think that it can be tedious. I think that the thing that is holding me back the most is that I don't have any pictures that I really want or need to work on; it's been over a week since I last took pictures of anything. I would probably be more enthusiastic about it if I had material that I would want to work with. I love the idea of doing good photography work, but I can't seem to make myself get out there are practice, especially in the specific niche of photography that most interests me.

 

The other issue is that, at the moment, there aren't any hobbies that resonate with me. It feels like I've lost both my drive to do most non-essential things and the enthusiasm that I used to hold for many of the things that I was passionate about. The thing that sometimes concerns me is that nothing has taken their place. However, I still really like these things, but I don't seem to have the will to do them - to use a photography example, I love the idea of photography and of the specific subject that I want to photograph, but I can't seem to make myself take pictures...

[apocopate]

Perhaps try to make yourself accountable; tell people you're going to do something. For me at least it tends to help me perform less pleasant activities. Also just writing things down on a schedule can help out sometimes.

[shagy2303]

honestly this is me to a tee.

[Pretzle]

I have the same problem. Everything I do feels like it's a 'I have to do this' thing, the rest I can't be bothered about at all. 

 

Hobbies? I have things I do, or used to do. But enjoying that? Not right now. 

 

For me it's related to my depression... Do you have any mood problems by any chance? I'm working with a therapist at the moment, but to be honest I don't have a lot of hope of things changing...