Things To Do in Five Minutes or Less Instead of Napping
Newton’s First Law: Inertia1
An object at rest remains at rest, and an object in motion remains in motion.
Inertia is a law of physics, but sometimes, it seems like a law of life as well. As the popular saying goes, the hardest step is getting started. Once the ball gets rolling, things seem to get themselves done in a flash.
The point of this post is to compile a list of things I can do to get started on projects that I care about. Each item on the list must be effortlessly easy and must guarantee tangible progress in under five minutes.
This list is a work in progress.
Big Ol’ List of Triggers
In The Art of Learning2, Joshua Waitzkin suggests associating a mindset of focus with a ritual like meditation, or listening to a specific song, or even eating yogurt. He refers to these rituals as “triggers” because they trigger a mindset of focus.
So, this list is essentially a list of triggers that work for me.
General Triggers
Get some fresh air
I’ve found that the best thing for my productivity is to simply step outside as soon as possible. It’s so easy and takes no time at all, but feeling the fresh air and experiencing all of the sights, sounds, smells, and sensations that I don’t get while locked inside my room always invigorates me. This counts as “tangible progress” because stepping outside is usually one of the first things I need to do in my day, as I need to go to class or go to a library (or soon, go to work).
Blog
Migrate one post from ogelsir.blogspot.com to oliverjiang.me
Throughout my childhood, I kept a blog on origami (among other things). I would like to migrate those posts over here. It’s a nontrivial task since there’s a decent number of posts, but it’s easy if I do them one at a time. This also serves as a good trigger because reading my old posts might inspire new ideas, and the act of pushing commits to my server and seeing updates on my blog feels satisfying and will inspire me to update my blog for real.
Reading
Read a single page
I like reading, but I don’t read nearly as much as I’d like for all the typical reasons. It’s not as stimulating as cheaper media, and it requires more effort. However, I find that once I get started, it’s really easy to get sucked in.
Chess
Puzzle Rush
Puzzle Rush is a solo mode on chess.com where the aim is to solve as many puzzles as you can in five minutes. Puzzle Rush gives you puzzles in order of difficulty, so I’m guaranteed to solve a number of puzzles. Although I don’t think puzzle rush is the best tool for training, it’s a great way to warm up and get into the mood for more difficult training.
Origami
Fold one step in whatever model I’m working on
Origami, especially more rewarding projects, can take a long time. For this reason, I sometimes leave projects untouched for a very long time, instead opting to fold only easy models that I’m comfortable with. Like my blogging trigger, I think I should focus on a single step at a time.
Read one page in Origami Design Secrets
I first “read” Origami Design Secrets (ODS) by Robert Lang around middle school. I really did not comprehend much of it at the time. Now, armed with the mathematical maturity of a college student, I am rereading it with the aim of filling in the holes in my understanding of origami design theory. So, reading a single page of ODS will serve as a good trigger to get my mind thinking about origami design.
Pool
Do a basic pool drill
I don’t really need a pool trigger, since there is a pool table in my apartment lobby. I see the pool table whenever I walk in or out, and seeing it often causes me to make a detour in my day to play pool. However, I could use some more discipline in my pool practice and do more drills rather than just fool around, so I decided to include pool on my list as well.
Cubing
Solve a rubiks cube one times
I learned how to solve a rubiks cube from my friend last summer, but I haven’t really been practicing. At my best, I could solve a cube in under a minute, but now I’m probably closer to two minutes.
Fitness
Stretch
It’s healthy to stretch every day, and it’s extremely easy.
Do five pushups
Doing five pushups is easy, and once I’ve started, I might as well do more.