Dear James:

When you see “the mountain of work stretching out in front” of you and you give up- I am familiar with that in my own life. I call it the Overwhelm Factor. The work ahead, what is required, looks (and is) so huge that it makes you instantly weak, doesn’t it? Just the thought of it. And naturally, plagued by that instant exhaustion, you give up. When I experience the Overwhelm Factor, I disengage from the thought/ image of the final result of my work-

and instead, I think to myself: I am intending to work for an hour. My goal is not the result of my work, but working for one hour regardless of how much work I accomplish. I stop expecting the final result and focus on the one-step-at-a-time that I am taking, within the hour, not looking further or farther. Just this. And then, just that.

Stay away from “seeing” the whole picture and wanting so much to be there already. A bit at a time, and over time, you will be surprised how much you accomplished.

Try this attitude when doing some other project, other than gaming. It can be doing the dishes. Let’s say there are too many dishes in the sink and you experience the Overwhelm Factor, approach the dishes one at a time, saying to yourself: I am only going to wash dishes for ten minutes, and then stop regardless of whether all the dishes are washed.

Post again, anytime.

anita