Embracing Structure: How I Overcame Boredom and Boosted Productivity

I am happy to report that I have vanquished my boredom. Hurrah! And you know what it took? Structure. 

I know, I know. Big surprise, right? 

For the last few months, I’ve been pretty miserable. I’ve been making G miserable too, with all my mopey, Eeyore-ish energy.

As we drove home from Rehoboth in early August, G thought my problem was that needed a project. She was right, but I couldn’t think of a single thing I wanted to do. 

Everything I considered felt like a burdensome chore. Everything made me want to take a nap.

But on my Campus Scamper the other day, I was listening to Cal Newport’s Podcast, Deep Questions. 

You know Cal Newport, right? The guy who wrote So Good They Can’t Ignore You and Digital Minimalism, and other books about managing your time?

I like him, but he’s freaking intense. He’s Mr. Structure.

He’s Mr. Georgetown Professor and Writer of Seven Best-selling books and also a Columnist for The New Yorker. 

The way he does all this over-achieving is by assigning every waking hour a job. 

He even designed a spiral-bound Time Block Planner like the one he uses, and he will sell it to you on Amazon for seventeen bucks. 

And I bought it. 

Of course I bought it. Because I need structure. And timelines. And an engrossing project to be happy.

I don’t love that I am this kind of person.

I wish I were more free-wheeling and spontaneous, a creature of whimsy, driven by synchronicity and intuition rather than the Pomodoro technique.  In my psychology, I want to be what BoHo Chic is in fashion—all flowy skirts, strappy sandals, and diaphanous scarves— the Anthropologie aesthetic.

But in my heart of hearts, I know I am Banana Republic: navy blazer, white button-down, dark trousers, and nice loafer.

So as I was sweating up Cardiac, listening to Cal wax rhapsodic about productivity and organizational systems, I knew what I had to do to get out of my funk.

Back at home, still out of breath, I dusted off my Time Block planner, opened my calendar, spread out the next three months, and made a commitment that by the end of November to accomplish three things:

Gain lean muscle. This is body project I will track weekly on my Withings scale and hope to see the needle move by the end of November.

Design and host that workshop in the studio I’ve been thinking about for months. (Deadline: this month)

Get the goddamn Substack up. (Deadline:End of November, hopefully earlier. 

I feel SO much better now. Hold me accountable, okay? I am an Obliger, after all, so ask me how it’s going from time to time. And I’ll keep you posted as I hit my marks.

Happy New Year, everybody.