Minimal Viable Action

Day 197 / 365

We all love to procrastinate. Everyone knows that there is shit they need to do, but are convinced that its a task better suited for their future self. You must have noticed, it’s almost like our own brain tricks us into putting off work. There have been countless times I have thought that I’ll finish up some work before sleeping at any cost. But when the clock hits 10 PM, I somehow forget about that resolution and start telling myself how sleep is more important than any work and all that crap.

Which brings me to the point of this blog. If we can trick ourselves into procrastinating, can’t we trick ourselves into doing some work instead? That’s where the concept of Minimal Viable Action comes into the picture.

The idea is quite simple. We usually don’t want to do a task because it might be big. So you need to find out the minimal thing you need to do to get started with the task. Then tell yourself to forget about the task, and that this minimal action is all you need to do. Do this and see how easy it is to trick your brain.

As I am typing this blog I am in an auto on my way back home. This is a perfect time to write a blog, but as I was sitting tired from all the work, I was more inclined to just pass this time by listening to some music. This happens quite a lot, and I have figured out the Minimal Viable Action I need to tackle this. I tell myself that all I have to do is to open up my laptop, go to medium and start a draft with just a title. That’s it. I can finish the post when I reach home.

Now writing the title is quite a simple task, so it’s tough for my procrastination loving brain to talk me out of it. And what happens most of the time is that this simple task get’s me into the flow of writing a blog, and I start getting ideas about things I can include in it. I will soon have a few sentences written which will give me a slight sense of accomplishment. As my task was just to write the title, anything else I managed to do is a bonus!

Almost every time I have done this, I have been able to finish the blog before I reach home.

Other examples of such minimal actions could be putting on your running shoes, opening up a novel you want to read and going through the table of contents, picking up and tuning your guitar. Believe me, it’s way easier to trick your brain than you think.

This post is part of my 365 Day Project for 2019. Read about it here

Yesterday’s blog — Why the Aztecs sacrificed their children