document updated 14 years ago, on May 3, 2010
One time I was part of a moderately dangerous car race. Another competitor explained to me how he balanced the demands of staying safe and getting to the finish line, by enumerating the priorities like this, and it really struck me how some simple and basic rules can sometimes make it clear what the goals are.
- First priority: end the day safely
- Second priority: get to the finish line
(this race involved something like orienteering, so reaching the finish line was an accomplishment in itself)
- Third priority: get there as quickly as possible
My priorities for being productive while being cognizant of problems caused by my internet addiction are like this:
- if I feel like I can't control whether I'm going to do escapism, WRITE DOWN why I'm doing escapism
- this really helps because 1) afterwards I can review if my escapism has helped me handle my anxiety at all (answer: no, it never does), and 2) it gives me a chance to tackle the real issue afterwards, when I realize that escapism doesn't help
- tr