Writing
fromThe New Yorker
2 days agoWhy Can't You Finish Anything?
The skills required to complete projects often differ significantly from those needed to initiate them.
Lingering tasks make us feel bad. The Zeigarnik effect, first documented by psychologist Bluma Zeigarnik a century ago: explains that unfinished tasks stick in memory better than completed ones, creating a cognitive burden and potential anxiety trigger. Research shows that incomplete tasks cause rumination and might even disrupt sleep patterns. We also have a natural drive to finish what we start, because abandoning tasks feels
The truth is that an unfinished creative project can have far-reaching negative effects on the artists/makers/creatives who surround themselves, their workshops, their hard drives, and their kitchen tables with projects left undone. Research suggests that ruminating about unfinished projects interferes with sleep-particularly on weekends (Syrek, Weigelt, Peifer & Antoni, 2017). Aren't weekends the time when we creatives get things done?