When I realized that all of my projects were long term and taking foreverrrrr to finish, I figured out a way to turn things around, make some dopamine and keep things rolling when things felt hard.
Finding Myself Unbalanced
What projects I had going
Two quilts that I started last year
baste, quilt, trim, make binding (least favorite) and hand sew the binding
2025 goals
make clothes, both sewn and crocheted
make a giant quilt (getting that long-armed at least)
House projects:
Dining room renovation
drywall spackled
prime and paint
pick out a light fixture
call electrician to install
Fix up office/guest room
paint
build a custom built in desk
build a custom murphey bed
build custom shelving
style and organize
buy a new office chair (huge undertaking by itself)
Rearrange my kid’s room
swap out dressers
new art on the wall
move all lego bricks and sets back to the basement
expand library shelving or move some books to the family room
add storage to closet
General tidying and downsizing
All of that was on top of my perpetual to-dos
laundry
dishes
cookies
cleaning
keeping my child alive
Even my crossword puzzles take multiple days to finish!
How I felt
My brain will run down the list and rearrange priorities all throughout the day
Obviously overwhelmed 🫠
Constantly disappointed in myself for not having these things complete already
Guilt spiral 🌀
Finding the Balance
How I started to fix it
Recognize that it’s happening
Name how it’s making you feel
Notice how it makes your body feel
Go touch grass 🌷
Get a quick win
Making earrings was my quick win project
Small projects, easily completed, start to finish, in one sitting
Get that hit of dopamine!
Schedule bits of time to work on your big projects
Maybe it’s obvious, but my pinball brain needs it on the calendar (even if I move it around)
Break down the big project into all the little parts. Ambiguity will stall any project for me.
Bake in rewards for making progress
Cut out all your quilt pieces? Get a donut! 🍩
Sanded down all the spackle in your drywall? Buy a book! 📚
Tidied the family room and it’s ready for a new rug? Go wander the thrift store!
Reframe and Carry on
Release yourself from any guilt. Finishing a project doesn’t make you morally better than anyone else, just like not finishing it doesn’t mean a garbage person. Rein in your brain. She’s mean.
Make a list of quick win projects and dopamine generator or dynamo if you will. Keep this where you can access it easily - notes on your phone, notion doc, post-it in your kitchen - so you can pull from it when you need
Regularly check-in on your goals to reassess and alter if you need.
Links
Newsletter: https://beckyhelms.substack.com/p/shadow-cats-and-realizations
Personal Projects Update episode: https://beckyhelms.substack.com/p/19-personal-project-catch-up-with
Q1 Goals & Panning episode: https://beckyhelms.substack.com/p/14-q1-goals-and-planning-check-in
Creative Retrospective episode: https://beckyhelms.substack.com/p/6-becky-2024-creative-retrospective
Find me all over the place!
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebeckyhelms/
Substack: https://substack.com/@beckyhelms
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BeckyHelms
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