Habit check
What keeps wearing you down? A two-minute check
Weeks can get heavy for ordinary reasons, and a few everyday habits are often part of it: habits that once made sense and now cost more than they give. These twelve questions are built on ideas from my free book After the Crash and look at four of them. You get the one that shows up most for you, and one small thing to try this week.
2 minutesInstant resultNo email needed
This is a look at habits in your week, not a medical test or an assessment of your health. Your answers stay in your browser: nothing is sent or saved. If you're struggling or feel unwell, talk to a doctor or someone you trust. If you ever feel unsafe, call your local emergency number.
Your result
Room in your week
None of these four habits stands out for you right now. A few moments may still ring true, and that's normal. The room you have is worth protecting: the weeks that go well are usually the ones with some room in them.
One step for this week: Write down one thing that keeps your week this way, so you can come back to it when things get busy.
All four at once
All four habits show up a lot for you, so it isn't one habit to fix. It looks like a week with a lot in it. Taking something off is often a better first move than adding a new system.
One step for this week: Take one thing off this week's list completely: drop it, hand it on, or move it to next month.
More than one habit
{tied} came out level for you, so there's no single one to point at. They can feed each other, so it's fine to start with just one.
One step for this week: Pick whichever of {tied} feels easier to change, and write down one small thing you'll do differently this week.
All in, then stretched thin
This habit shows up for you now and then rather than a lot, so what follows may fit only some weeks. Take what fits.
You give a lot to whatever is in front of you, and your week ends up with no slack left over. Plans built for your best days leave no room for an ordinary one, so one rough week can throw the next few off. It isn't a lack of discipline. It's a plan with no room in it.
One step for this week: Pick an amount of focused work you could manage on an ordinary day, and stop there each day you work this week, even on a good day.
What pointed here
Everyone else's requests first
This habit shows up for you now and then rather than a lot, so what follows may fit only some weeks. Take what fits.
Other people's requests can fill your week before your own plans get a turn. Saying yes feels kind, and saying no feels like letting someone down. It's a common habit, and it's about planning, not character: every yes uses time and energy that then isn't there for what matters to you.
One step for this week: Answer one request with "Let me check and come back to you" instead of a yes on the spot.
What pointed here
Rest comes last
This habit shows up for you now and then rather than a lot, so what follows may fit only some weeks. Take what fits.
For you, a break tends to come with conditions: finish everything first, then maybe stop. So rest can get pushed back again and again, and when it comes it may not feel like rest. Rest isn't a reward for finishing. It's part of how a good week works.
One step for this week: Put one short break in your calendar this week, before the work is done, and take it without making it up afterwards.
What pointed here
Carrying it all in your head
This habit shows up for you now and then rather than a lot, so what follows may fit only some weeks. Take what fits.
You hold a lot of open tasks and small decisions in your head at once. Every one of them takes a little attention, all day, even when you're not working on it. As David Allen puts it, your mind is for having ideas, not holding them.
One step for this week: Set a ten-minute timer and write down, or say into a voice note, everything on your mind. Then pick the one thing that matters most tomorrow.
What pointed here
How the four habits showed up for you
This looks at habits, not health. If a week ever feels too heavy, or the heaviness doesn't lift, talk to a doctor or someone you trust. If you ever feel unsafe, call your local emergency number.
Get the free book: After the Crash
Simple systems for the week and the energy you actually have. The book comes by email, followed by ten short emails to help you use it. Your answers here stay in your browser; the book only needs your email.
First, press the link in your inbox. Then, while you wait for the book:
Productive with low energy
Getting the important things done when your energy is low or uneven.
Saying no when your energy is low
Short scripts for turning things down without a long explanation.
A simple weekly review
One regular sitting each week where everything in your head gets a place, starting with a ten-minute brain dump.
Low-energy days
Getting the important things done when your energy is low or uneven, without guilt about the rest.
Simple structure
Small systems that still work in a bad week: fewer yeses, a not-to-do list and a short weekly review.
A simple weekly review
One regular look back and ahead each week, to keep the room you have.
Low-energy days
Getting the important things done when your energy is low or uneven, without guilt about the rest.