On Listless Days, You Do Not Have to Try to Change Yourself Completely
There are days when you can see what needs to be done, but your body and mind will not cooperate. In those moments, what you need may be one small action you can manage right now, rather than a grand resolution.
You can clearly see what needs to be done, but your body will not move. You need to open your email, read research materials, and go to work, yet your spirits keep sinking. On days like these, we are quick to call ourselves lazy. However, the lecture transcript explains listlessness as “a state in which you want to act but do not have the energy to do so.” At least in that moment, harsh words directed at yourself may not be an accurate description.
Small Movements Over Grand Resolutions
On a day when listlessness arises, your state may not change simply because you resolve to “live positively from now on.” The recurring message in the lecture was that action changes the brain. The actions meant here, however, are not great accomplishments. Instead of cleaning the entire house, wash a few cups. Instead of designing the day perfectly, take a short walk. Instead of trying to deal with everything at once, break your tasks down into the smallest possible units.
If you are a graduate student, rather than trying to finish an entire paper, you can open the file and simply check the title. If you are a working professional, rather than trying to handle all your overdue tasks, you can drink some water and tidy just one area of your desk. Today’s standard may not be “How much did I accomplish?” but “Did I reduce it to a size I can manage?”
Self-Esteem Does Not Grow Only Through Grand Successes
The transcript says that choosing a very small mission you can accomplish 100% and experiencing success in it becomes the foundation of self-esteem. It is fine if it seems trivial. The feeling of keeping a small promise can help prevent you from defining yourself as a failure on a listless day.
One thing you can do today is enough. Sit at your desk, open a window, wash one cup, or walk somewhere nearby. And if you want to stop along the way, you may stop. A small choice is not a command intended to control you; it is room to stand on your own side again.
What you need on a listless day is not harsher criticism. It is acknowledging your current energy and moving only as much as you can within it. It is okay if you do not fully recover today. A day when you washed one cup, a day when you opened one file, and a day when you chose to rest without doing anything are all your days.