Scientific American: Depression’s Evolutionary Roots — Two scientists suggest that depression is not a malfunction, but a mental adaptation that brings certain cognitive advantages.
Basically, depression is an advanced problem-solving state. So make it work for you, not against you!
In the flood of information around us, one of the most efficient ways to sort out "good" from "bad" is to use a quality scale. For example, IMDB rates movies from 1 to 10, and Metacritic uses a scale of 0 to 100. Many critics also use a star system that starts at 0 or 1 and peaks at 4 or 5, depending on the version.
Although numbers like these are great for computing averages and trends, they are harder to interpret for humans, and this can cause a lot of inconsistency and inaccuracy in your data. What exactly does a 3 mean? Does my feeling of "threeness" really correspond to yours?
You’ve got Gomer on line 4 and Melvin on line 5 when someone walks in the door. You smile and say, "Hi there, I’ll be with you in a moment. Please have a seat." Now back to Marvin. Or was it Melvin?
There’s only so much room up there for these kinds of details. Jot it down! This frees your short-term memory so you can fully serve in the present moment. In Getting Things Done, David Allen calls it your "psychic RAM".
Be ready for anything that comes at you. I keep a notepad handy in every room, especially near phones. A quick list goes a long way in centring you on your immediate tasks and knowing when they’re due.
Inspired by a recent conversation with Laleh, Grace and Levi over at FreshBooks, I thought I’d share some of my insights on the art of multi-tasking. Here are some tips to keep you in the Flow when a dozen things are flying your way.
Whenever you can single-task, do it! Your productivity peaks once you’re in the zone.
Studies consistently show that single-taskers get things done faster and more efficiently than multi-taskers. For example, a study for Hewlett Packard found that workers interrupted by e-mails and phone calls were less productive than pot smokers!
Of course, in many cases, reality forces us to multi-task. But when you do have a choice, this is your cue to put everything else on hold and finish the current task first. Your brain will thank you later.
New research shows that self-help affirmations only work if you already believe in them. (BBC article: Self-help "makes you feel worse")
So if you’re insecure about something, let’s say, your appearance or your ability to show up on time, don’t use a polar-opposite mantra like "I am beautiful." or "I am always early." You’ll actually end up depressing yourself!
The trick is to translate that idea or goal into something you already know when you’re feeling your best. So maybe try "I have strong arms." or "I love setting appointments in my smartphone." or whatever applies to you. Basically, you can’t teleport your way to a state that is out of reach. Instead, you have to remind yourself of your front-line best real position. Reaffirming this believable but strong starting point, you can maintain that progress and slowly grow with new insights from there.
I personally like using John’s Background Switcher to randomly rotate my inspirational reminders as my computer’s wallpaper. I use it in a way similar to David Allen’s tickler file in Getting Things Done. Using an image editor (like GIMP or even an online tool like Big Huge Labs’ motivational poster generator or Sumo Paint), I drew up a bunch of silly but believable self-reminders for myself. Power up!
Sleep dysregulation is a fairly common and frustrating struggle for people on the ADHD/autism spectrum, especially for adults. The battle to fall asleep and wake up at the right times is related to the difficulty changing gears that some of us experience. In fact, sleeping problems used to be listed in the
My favourite trick to waking up early is bold and simple. As soon as you notice you’re awake, leave the room now. "Don’t allow yourself to rationalize going back to bed. Just force yourself to go out of the room." says Zen Habits in 10 benefits of rising early, and how to do it. That’s it. No thoughts, just action. If you allow any words in your head, start the countdown… 10, 9, 8, boom! And suddenly you’re up and checking your e-mail in the other room, or whatever.
If you stay horizontal and start analyzing how many more snoozes you can afford, you’re already in the wrong race. The more intelligent and creative your brain is, the faster it will trick you and win.
Morning pill ritualIf you take a stimulant prescription like Dexedrine to be functional throughout the day, you can also use it to regulate your morning energy levels and avoid the dreaded oversleeping accident.
Every night before going to bed, fill up a glass of water and leave it with your morning dose on your bedside table, between you and your clock. Set two alarms, for example, like this:
For more sleep advice, I recommend ADDitude’s article: End Bedtime Battles.
When you’re playing, really play. When you’re working, really work. It’s that simple.
Procrastination is not procrastination if you actually allow yourself the break. If you’re thinking about how you should actually be working while you’re playing, then you’re not doing either of them effectively!
When you need a break from work, grab a kitchen timer (you should have one in every room of the house!) and set it to 15 minutes or whatever you think is appropriate.
Then you’re free to hyperfocus on playing that online game, napping, watching that funny video or whatever. You can let go and fully immerse yourself in the fun, because the timer will remind you (ding!) when it’s time to come back to your more serious task.
