No one could have expected the situation that the world is now in at the beginning of January, so the international quarantine caught the many off guard. Everyone was looking forward to a new year with different goals they wanted to achieve, but those goals seemed to fade once the lockdown, due to COVID-19, started. People took the opportunity to take a break from work and school, before virtual learning and work started back up. Many People promised themselves that this short rest would not stop them from being productive again once they had to start working, but that turned out to be a lie. Staying at home with the same setting and people, with so many distractions, made some procrastinate longer than they realized. People were stuck in an endless loop between wanting to be productive, letting themselves down, releasing stress by relaxing, and repeating the cycle. After being stuck in that cycle myself, I figured out a way to take time to relax while being productive.
In order to find a way to break the cycle, it is necessary to find where the cycle repeats, why it repeats, and how to fix it. Most people try to set goals in their daily life, such as studying for an exam or finishing a project, but fail to complete the goal because there are an endless amount of ways to amuse themselves. The countless articles, videos, and games released during the quarantine are a testament to this. Staying at home, a place to relax, instead of school or work, where there are schedules that we need to be followed, many become distracted. So when one inevitably fails at the goals they have set, they feel like they let themself down and try to feel better by relaxing. This is where the cycle starts again. Many make a goal that is harder to reach because they believe that they need to make up for the mistakes from the previous cycles.
My way of breaking this loop is to give myself breaks after a little while of working. At the beginning of each week, I plan which days I will give myself time to rest and not worry about work. On these days, I relax for the majority of the day and only worry about school work if there is a time limit that I must follow. Having two days where I can do what I want , such as playing an instrument, chatting with friends, or watching shows on streaming platforms, allows me to focus on the work that I have to do when I need to complete it. Taking breaks has been very efficient for me because I constantly get to remind myself that in a certain amount of time I will be able to rest, giving me the strength and endurance to finish my work. I enjoy seeing the final goal or destination that I have to reach when I start my work because I know how much more work is left, which helps to encourage myself.
Although this strategy of taking a few days of rest seems like it would make one less productive, these pockets of time are important to take so that one does not overexert themself and lose out on more than they would miss out on by taking occasional breaks.
