⚡️ Quick note:
This isn’t a Taskflow Tuesday—just something new I’m trying. Every now and then, when an idea really sticks with me, I’ll send a longer reflection like this.
It’s still rooted in the same heart behind Taskflow: quieting the noise, focusing on what matters, and building a life that reflects it.
The false hope of perfect systems
We expect ourselves to learn something, change our lives, and then apply what we’ve learned perfectly forever.
We build a new habit or productivity system and quietly hope it’ll run flawlessly in the background as we reach nirvana.
The reality is, everything takes time and energy and most things we try to integrate into our lives, no matter how helpful, won’t stick automatically.
Not without attention. Not without friction.
We operate differently from week to week - month to month.
Low energy → high energy.
Low focus → high focus.
Low motivation → high motivation.
“But wait,” you might say, “I thought the whole point of systems was to not rely on willpower?”
Yes, some systems can remove variability, but for many habits and productivity tools, they need consistent attention.
It still takes effort.
A few minutes planning your day. 20 minutes planning your week. 10 minutes sorting your tasks. We might have good systems but they still require maintenance and execution.
The shame spiral that keeps us stuck
What I’ve learned is this: It’s completely normal to have weeks where everything clicks, followed by a week (or three) where you feel foggy and unmotivated.
For me, I’ll go 1–2 months firing on all cylinders—and then about a month in a rut.
What keeps me in the rut is the disappointment I feel about being there in the first place. This cycle of shame keeps me from practicing the good habits I’m working on, or implementing the systems I’ve built.
Since it’s so normal to fall off the wagon, my new goal is to accept that, and bounce back as quickly as possible.
Instead of pouring energy into avoiding failure at all costs, I’m learning to fail faster and recover better. Shorten the amount of time it takes to get back on track.
And often, a rut isn’t just a random funk - it’s feedback. It’s telling you something’s broken, or something needs adjusting.
When you get in a rut, think back on when, where, and why you got off track. Reject the shame. Solve the problem. Tune up your systems, and bounce back.
Sometimes falling into ruts are signs that we are about to fully burn out.
Listen to the signs! Make the adjustments. Say no to more things. Ask for help. You aren’t a machine.
Prioritize what’s most important. Cut out what’s unimportant so that you can have more time to get ahead of what becomes urgent.
When survival mode becomes your default
I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that too many people live most of their lives in a “rut”, but they don’t realize it because it’s become their norm.
They’re getting by - surviving, but there’s a slow drift happening away from living life to the full. Everything feels urgent but nothing feels meaningful. And because we never hit rock bottom as we move through life on Anxious Autopilot Mode, it’s easy to assume everything’s fine.
But fine isn’t the goal. We weren’t made for fine.
What if you had a backup system for those times? A pared down version that kept moving the needle forward while also taking into account our low energy, motivation, and focus.
A stripped-down morning routine
A shorter weekly planning session
A simpler task list
A bare-bones calendar setup
Let’s get even more proactive. Write down 3-5 things that you could do that would have a high chance of getting out of a funk.
There’s one thing that gets me out of a rut unlike anything else. But I’ll share about that next time. 😉
Thanks for reading! This my first essay in this style - I’d love to hear your thoughts and if you’d like to read more essays like this.
I’ll leave you with this question: If you built a “rut mode” version of your week, what would it look like?
That’s all for now! Have a great day. 👊🏼
David
Well done David; this is excellent! Thanks for the graphics.
Love this. Rut mode OS: identify 1 task per day that will move the needle forward and do at least that. (An idea…)