Like – Just for an example – I want to play every video game, so I end up not playing none and instead just fucking around online with stuff that doesn’t require initiative. The only override I’ve found is involving other people, I always make time for an RPG session with my friends or for hanging out and such. But I have trouble starting stuff for myself.
What do?
Create artificial restrictions.
One year I decided I would only read ‘classics’ (pre-1950), one year I only read sci-fi, one year I only read Shakespeare’s plays, in chronological order as written.
In all of those years I read more than I did normally, with the added bonus that it pushed me to read things I might not have otherwise picked up.
For video games, something I’ve enjoyed in the past is a gaming alphabet: for a year, you keep a list of all 26 letters A-Z. Every time you start a game, it should be something you: A.) haven’t played before, and B.) the title should start with a letter you haven’t used yet.
It encourages you to scroll through your backlog and pick something different because it’s a letter you need. Plus, over the year you’ll build a list of all the games you played (you can add short reviews too!) which can be a fun look back later on.
What were your favorite reads?
I’d be here for hours trying to list them all, so I’ll just do one for each category:
Really there were dozens that stuck out, and two of my biggest takeaways were that great writing is timeless, and classic literature is far more approachable and relatable than you might think.