Basically, it’s thinking about doing the work that causes the reaction. If I commit to opening the files but not working on them, then I have a minimal reaction.
If I commit to opening the files but not working on them, then I have a minimal reaction.
Excellent. If your deadline allows, you can explicitly commit to not working on the drafts until you figured out what causes your reaction to opening the files.
By minimal do you mean effectively no reaction or that you still get a jolt of adrenaline but it’s bearable? In the latter case, opening and closing the files until it’s no longer effortful or stressful would be the first step. Otherwise you can move onto looking but not editing (check that it’s all there and not corrupted, as Alicorn suggested).
I mean a little one—mild butterflies in the stomach. I’ll try it. (I will try all of the suggestions. But not tonight—it’s my bedtime. Damn you, little red envelope!)
Does the stress reaction feel connected to time pressure of any kind? If so, that needs to go. If you feel like you’re in crunch time:
a) Ignore all optional suggestions, such as datadataeverywhere’s, which call for you to get the work done by a specific milestone or date. (No disrespect intended to dde; that would be a good suggestion if your difficulty is more a matter of “the perfect is the enemy of the good” rather than “no time no time aaaaah”.)
b) If there is some deadline you cannot readily ignore on those papers, consider alternatives. Could you write a new, different paper instead for the same purpose? Can you get your name on a friend’s paper and get similar return on the submission? Can you withdraw with a penalty that currently scares you less than working on the papers? Note: don’t actually do these things, not if you actually want the specified work done before the deadline—but think about them, make yourself aware that you are not juggling the end of the world here. Finishing your papers is just about guaranteed not to be the One True Path To Success.
c) Forbid yourself to touch those papers for some significant period of time. You are permitted (but not obliged) to think about them, but you can’t actually open them up and change anything. “Significant period of time” here varies from person to person—I usually find the sweet spot between a day and a week, but if you operate on different time chunks than I do you might only need “till lunchtime” or as much as “a fortnight”. Do anything in the world you like except mess with those papers—they are off limits.
d) If this works the way it should, you should feel first relief, and then antsiness: you keep thinking of good ideas! But you can’t use any of them because your time isn’t up yet! It’s your morning/day/week/fortnight off! When it’s finally over you may find that you are eager to use up all of those ideas right away.
Basically, it’s thinking about doing the work that causes the reaction. If I commit to opening the files but not working on them, then I have a minimal reaction.
Excellent. If your deadline allows, you can explicitly commit to not working on the drafts until you figured out what causes your reaction to opening the files.
By minimal do you mean effectively no reaction or that you still get a jolt of adrenaline but it’s bearable? In the latter case, opening and closing the files until it’s no longer effortful or stressful would be the first step. Otherwise you can move onto looking but not editing (check that it’s all there and not corrupted, as Alicorn suggested).
I mean a little one—mild butterflies in the stomach. I’ll try it. (I will try all of the suggestions. But not tonight—it’s my bedtime. Damn you, little red envelope!)
Does the stress reaction feel connected to time pressure of any kind? If so, that needs to go. If you feel like you’re in crunch time:
a) Ignore all optional suggestions, such as datadataeverywhere’s, which call for you to get the work done by a specific milestone or date. (No disrespect intended to dde; that would be a good suggestion if your difficulty is more a matter of “the perfect is the enemy of the good” rather than “no time no time aaaaah”.)
b) If there is some deadline you cannot readily ignore on those papers, consider alternatives. Could you write a new, different paper instead for the same purpose? Can you get your name on a friend’s paper and get similar return on the submission? Can you withdraw with a penalty that currently scares you less than working on the papers? Note: don’t actually do these things, not if you actually want the specified work done before the deadline—but think about them, make yourself aware that you are not juggling the end of the world here. Finishing your papers is just about guaranteed not to be the One True Path To Success.
c) Forbid yourself to touch those papers for some significant period of time. You are permitted (but not obliged) to think about them, but you can’t actually open them up and change anything. “Significant period of time” here varies from person to person—I usually find the sweet spot between a day and a week, but if you operate on different time chunks than I do you might only need “till lunchtime” or as much as “a fortnight”. Do anything in the world you like except mess with those papers—they are off limits.
d) If this works the way it should, you should feel first relief, and then antsiness: you keep thinking of good ideas! But you can’t use any of them because your time isn’t up yet! It’s your morning/day/week/fortnight off! When it’s finally over you may find that you are eager to use up all of those ideas right away.