Try This When You Aren't Sure What to Do

Change your default behavior and see what happens.

Here’s a suggestion, offered with the usual caveat to take what works and ignore what doesn’t.

When you’re feeling stuck, change your default behavior. Avoid scrolling through feeds (in fact, avoid your phone altogether if possible), and steer clear of the typical things you do when you’re procrastinating. 

Try one of these things instead:

1. Take a walk.  

2. Do something helpful for someone.

3. Breathe deeply for at least one minute.

4. Delete something from your calendar. 

5. Review your list of big, lifelong goals—not your to-do list, your list of dreams.

6. Call or text a friend you haven’t talked to in a while. 

7. Make a quick plan to do something unusual in the next few days (meaning, something that’s outside your normal routine). 

8. Try guerrilla gardening in neglected urban spaces. (I just recently learned what this is!)

   

   Guerrilla (not gorilla) gardening in Germany. 📷

9. Listen to a song that uplifts you or brings back happy memories. (Alternatively: Listen to music from a genre you're unfamiliar with.)

10. Declutter a small area of your space.

11. Spend a few minutes learning something new.

12. Sit in a different spot than you usually do at home or work. A change of scenery, even minor, can shift your perspective.

13. Take a different route on your walk or drive.

14. Give yourself permission to do absolutely nothing for an hour. Simply sitting with your thoughts can be a form of self-care.

    

    Not sure what this photo is about but it seemed kind of maximalist so I liked it. 📷

15. Write a letter to your future self, outlining your hopes and dreams. Seal it and mark it to be opened at a future date.

16. Record a voice memo of your current thoughts and feelings, as a way to verbally process emotions.

17. Choose an analog alternative to a digital task, like writing a letter instead of sending an email.

18. Browse a bookstore or library without a specific book in mind. Look in a different section than you usually would.

Browse a bookstore … there might even be cupcakes!

18. Try a new form of exercise or a physical activity you’ve never done before, even if it’s just a different kind of yoga or a new walking trail.

19. Reflect on a recent challenge you've overcome. Write down what it taught you.

20. Compliment someone.

21. Try to fix something small that’s been broken instead of replacing it. (Side note, this doesn’t work for me because I can’t fix anything. But maybe you can!)

What would you add to the list?