How to keep the momentum going in the final months of 2022
Photo by Fitsum Admasu on Unsplash
For many, right now is a busy time. Maybe you’re undertaking a doctorate and preparing for end-of-year confirmation of candidature things (if so, I resonate deeply with you). Or, perhaps it’s the case that the end of 2022 is drawing closer, and there’s a whole lot you still want to achieve before it’s over. I am at a stage where I’m looking forward to a little break over Christmas, but there is a lot of great stuff that I’m keen to make progress on in the interim. If you’re in a similar position, check out a few tips to help keep the momentum going for these final weeks of the year. None of these is particularly novel: Actually, they are mostly basic. And obvious. But when there’s a lot going on, it’s easy to lose sight of the basics, even though those usually serve us the most. Here’s what I’m focusing on at the moment:
1. Protect your sleep.
In times of busyness, sleep is an easy sacrifice. “I’ll just stay up a little later to get this done.” “I’ll just wake up a little earlier than usual to complete this task.” This approach, though, is not ideal. Research consistently demonstrates that sleep is one of the most important processes we have to rest and energise the body and mind. In one study, regularly sleeping less than 7 to 8 hours a night was associated with impaired cognitive performance (like verbal and reasoning skills). Further, if you have something cognitively demanding scheduled for the next day, you may be better off sleeping a little more than usual to maximise your cognitive functioning. So, rather than reducing our sleep because we have a lot to do, we should be focused on protecting it.
2. Practise gratitude.
There’s a lot of research emerging about the positive impacts of gratitude, which can range from health to happiness and several aspects of well-being. For example, in one study, participants who wrote down ‘three good things’ each day experienced higher happiness levels for a lasting period of up to six months. Taking a recommendation from Tim Ferriss, I started using the 5 Minute Journal to formalise a daily gratitude intervention that doesn’t take up too much time (and is, then, theoretically easier to stick to). Like sleep, gratitude practice is easy to lose track of in busy times, but that’s also arguably when it’s even more important to maintain.
3. Keep your workspace clear and appealing.
Research indicates that clutter is, unsurprisingly, generally not great for productive work. Taking time to clean up, organise, and ensure your workspace is easy to navigate makes everything that little bit smoother. For me, that looks like a quick 10-minute tidy-up every couple of days, so I know where everything is and don’t have to carve out new real estate every time I need to use desk space. (I wrote another piece on spaces, colour and the environment in 2020 here.)
4. Take it ‘bird by bird’.
One of my all-time favourite books on writing is Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott. An extract: ‘thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he’d had three months to write, which was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilised by the huge task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother’s shoulder, and said, “Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.”’ (p. 19).
I love this story, and its powerful reminder that the biggest things are only ever really a bunch of small things put together. Breaking tasks down and focusing only on the small segment of work in front of you is a great approach to make progress on projects. Different people have different strategies here. To-do lists, simplifying to one or two key tasks to focus on each day, employing a prioritisation method to rank competing tasks; I don’t think it matters how exactly we organise big projects into smaller pieces so much as it matters that we do so.
Coming towards the end of the year can sometimes feel like the final leg of a marathon. I mean, I’ve never done a marathon, but I imagine the final part would be the hardest, because you’re pushing through that built-up fatigue and drawing out that last bit of energy to get you to the finish line. As we start counting down to the new year, we often have to maintain the energy to complete those final projects or tie up those loose ends. We also have to give compassion to ourselves; granting ourselves the kindness of acknowledging and celebrating how much we’ve already put into this year. And, to help us in that final leg, while the four focus areas above are far from revolutionary (as rightfully included in most self-development philosophies and approaches), they’re all powerful facilitators of productivity, performance and well-being.
Wishing you a productive and meaningful end to 2022,
Sonia