On Dawdling

Sometimes, when making an effort to accomplish something that requires a lot of time and effort, there's the thought that if I just used the ordinary gaps in my schedule more wisely, I could free up a large amount of time to further the goal. For example, if I chose to do something while riding the bus instead of just sitting there. Or, while waiting for the bus, instead of just standing there. Or, while drinking coffee just after getting up, instead of just listening to music. 

This is partially true. The problem is, though it might seem cost free, in my experience, it isn't. It does draw from resources that you'll need at other times for required tasks. It does make you feel a little less motivated, a little less able to concentrate when you have to do your 'official' work for the day, and so forth. 

My answer to this problem, at one point, was to push myself to enjoy the thing I was doing during those gaps between planned tasks, to convince myself that doing X was a kind of relaxation, so after doing it, I would have actually progressed toward my goal and at the same time got a feeling of being refreshed. It doesn't sound do-able, but it did work, to some degree, for me. I may try it again. 

In the end, we all die, and all the things we construct and accomplish turn to dust. Knowing this, I don't want to invest a lot of emotion or belief into it. Me doing X is just something that's happening temporarily in the world. Both me and it will someday disappear.