A Mason's Work

Ever find yourself upgrading light bulbs to dodge a work task? This episode digs into the psychology of avoidance, offering hands-on strategies to conquer procrastination. We'll explore micro-stepping, labeling avoidance, and utilizing cognitive tools for deeper work. Tune in to transform your 'productively unproductive' moments into real progress!

Key Points
• Discussing analysis as action's surrogate
• Breaking work into micro steps
• Identifying procrastination vs. analysis
• Labeling avoidant behaviors effectively
• Using cognitive tools for deep work

Best Quotes
00:14 - 00:21
• "It's difficult at times to tell when you are analyzing as a surrogate for action."

01:47 - 01:51
• "The easiest way is to be honest, is to just start the work."

02:33 - 02:44
• "That kind of microstepping is more productive in many cases than the reflective analysis work."

03:21 - 03:32
• "The litmus test, the way to figure that out at this point is to try and start the task at hand with the smallest possible sort of action that you can take."

03:58 - 04:11
• "Hey, I think I'm avoiding doing this, or, Hey, I think I am going and having this snack instead of working because I know I like snacks and I know I don't want to do this work."

04:32 - 04:38
• "And then again, cultivate that awareness of when you're avoiding versus when you are productively unproductive or vice versa."