What’s Your Motivation?

I hate folding laundry.

Honestly, hate may be too kind a word.

I loathe folding laundry.

I would rather do pretty much anything in the world than hang, sort and fold.

I have such a disdain for folding laundry that my family typically has what we’ve lovingly named “Clean Clothes Mountain” near the sofa in the master bedroom.

The mountain of freshness is where you dig to find matching clean socks.

About once a month my 11-year-old know-it-all daughter mutters “I shouldn’t have to do this” as she digs for socks while my husband honks his car horn, urging her to hurry so as not to miss her morning ride.

Point taken.

That’s when I usually know it’s time for me to sort the socks.

Enter – my dirty little secret.

Yes, I have a secret worse than Clean Clothes Mountain.

I’m addicted to General Hospital.

GH is part of my routine. I record it on the DVR and candy save it until it’s time to fold laundry.

I refuse to allow myself to watch my favorite soap unless I’m folding clothes. Because I’m dying to know what’s going on with my favorite characters, the laundry gets folded.

I have taken a chore I hate and coupled it with something I enjoy, making the process a little more tolerable.

I was reminded of this mixture of love and hate recently when I participated in #prodchat. The weekly Twitter chat on productivity is at 7 p.m. Wednesdays.

I love the little tips I learn through the chat’s participants. Who doesn’t want to be more productive, after all?

A question during the recent chat was:

How do you make yourself complete a task that you have to do but don’t enjoy?

I also have work-related tasks that I have to do but don’t enjoy.

For example, I don’t really enjoy writing recommendation letters.

Although I’m happy to recommend students and find most of them worthy of high accolades, I find it difficult to write authentic-sounding praise.

It’s admittedly easier to force myself to perform this task than to fold laundry, but my motivation for recommendation letter writing is simple. I write it on my “to do” list.

Little is more satisfying to me than marking an item off of my list. I actually read somewhere (although I cannot remember where) that you get an emotional sense of accomplishment and relief when you mark tasks off of a list, making to do lists a positive step toward productivity.

When I make it through my entire list for the day, which I usually do, I feel accomplished. I also am able to relax more in the evening because I don’t feel like I have pending tasks “out there.”

I asked a few students how they force themselves to perform a task they have to do but don’t enjoy.

One student said she rewards herself with a treat. She admitted that her treat of choice during this season is candy corn. She completes her homework, then rewards herself with a handful of candy corn.

Another student said she rewards herself with television or social media. Once she completes the necessary task, like writing a paper, she allows herself to watch a TV program or spend some time on Facebook.

Another student’s method was much more direct. He said he just forces himself to do the task, realizing he then can do what he wants.

People obviously use a variety of methods to motivate themselves to do less-than-desirable tasks. I’m curious about yours.

Let’s Talk Nerdy!

How do you make yourself complete a task that you have to do but don’t enjoy?