Hey @actuallyautistic how do you pace yourself at an office job? I've been contracting for years but as of this week I'm an employee. My style of work is all or nothing, but I sense that isn't going to be sustainable in this context, and I suspect the allistics aren't working like that either anyway. How do you reset or recharge throughout the workday? How do you know if you're doing "enough" versus overperforming? How do you take care of yourself in socially sanctioned ways?
@actuallyautistic I'm going to share the notes I'm taking from this thread, in three toots. I'll keep these updated. Thanks to everyone who is joining the conversations!
1/3 TACTICS
* Take a few minutes in the loo every hour or two to chill
* Create a slow snack-prep ritual
* Stop to make a coffee or get a glass of water
@actuallyautistic
2/3 PLANNING
* Meet your (reasonable) deadlines: that is enough
* Set your own (reasonable) deadlines for tasks that don't already have deadlines, so you can then just meet those
* If projects come with estimated hours, find out how many hours a task is budgeted at and don't double-book those hours after the fact no matter how much time you have left over after getting it done
* When working with others, notice the cultural norms around how much one is expected to accomplish
@actuallyautistic
3/3 MINDSET
* Calibrate your mental energy: don't give every drop to a job which is, at the end of the day, just a job
* Go all-out on things that interest you and enjoy meeting your own high standards for those tasks
* Don't feel obligated to sacrifice yourself going all-out on tasks you dislike; they're just tasks
* Practice high standards without perfectionism: make a game of saying yes to small imperfections when you can
The problem I run into is that my job *is* one of my special interests. I'm a science fiction geek, I've been one my whole life, and my company works with NASA and ESA and builds things that go into space and do sciencey stuff.
Trying to find a balance here is the hardest thing I've done. Ever.
@ScottSoCal @actuallyautistic The struggle is real!