I recently had a rare hangover because these days, I barely consume any alcohol. Not sure if it’s aging or some other sensitivity, but alcohol, even in small quantities, is not doing me any favors. Hence, I have decided that heart palpitations, headaches, and nausea are not worth the short-lived fun. I still have a few glasses of wine, a Margarita, or a Manhattan, but I drink significantly less than 5-10 years ago and never on an empty stomach.
Before I go any deeper into this topic, let me put a disclaimer here: in this post, I am not referring to an alcohol-poisoning type of hangover where you can’t get out of bed until late afternoon because everything hurts, and the nausea is overwhelming – you know, the kind of hangover you will remember YEARS later.
So, if you hoped me to tell you a story about how you can party at age 40 until 4 am, take tequila shots, and wake up at 9 am and still carry on with your full schedule, then NO, unfortunately, I have not discovered a miracle supplement that would neutralize ethanol’s effects in your organism. By the way, if you know a safe and effective product to fight hangovers, please let me know in the comments! 🗨
The hangover I experienced was mild to moderate, with a headache, slight nausea, and tiredness. Basically, a perfect mental and physical state to stay in bed, watch mindless (reality) shows, scroll through social media, and eat something greasy. We all need days like this, right? Or do we?
Since it happened on a Sunday, on my meal prep and cleaning day (i.e., getting-ready-for-the-week day), I told myself that at least I should do these two things because if I won’t, I would be stressed out in the upcoming week. The truth is if I don’t do my household chores over the weekend, I am not doing them at all, which throws my entire week into chaos without food, clean clothes, and a truly messy home.
With that picture in mind, I told myself: “Just do these two chores as fast as you can, and you can be back in bed to enjoy your lazy day within the next couple of hours!”
Motivated by the reward I promised myself, I got up and started hassling around with a “quick & dirty” attitude. No AirPods with music or audiobook. I was not trying to speak to a friend over the phone to make the process more enjoyable. I was not second doubting if I should try to cook something new and healthy instead of sticking to my staple dishes. I wasn’t thinking of how to rearrange some things in the apartment or how to clean every single corner or drawer. Instead of enjoying the process and striving for perfectionism, I focused on one: I just want to finish these chores as soon as possible.
Dishwasher – on, washing machine with laundry – on, chopping veggies and meal prep – started, cleaning bathrooms – done, meanwhile the lentil soup and the over veggies are ready – meal prep done, cleaning the kitchen and the floors – done, put the laundry to dry – done. THE MISSION WAS COMPLETED IN LESS THAN 2 HOURS. I was really astonished and tried to figure out what had just happened as on my non-hangover days, the same tasks take at least TWICE as long. How is this possible?
From a self-development and goal-setting perspective, I already mentioned one significant factor: done is better than perfect. As a recovering perfectionist, I still believe that we shouldn’t call something “finished” unless we are at least 80% happy with it (probably an arguable statement), but perfectionism, on the other hand, will lead you to procrastination, potential anxiety, and often, not getting things done at all.
Another factor that played a huge role here is that I had a clear goal starting with an end in mind: do the meal prep and clean the apartment. Period. As I have been doing both chores hundreds of times (I think it is safe to call them habits at this point), I didn’t have to figure out the process, which saved me time and helped me avoid decision paralysis. If I wanted to, e.g., try out a new recipe, it would have easily added another 30 minutes to my chores.
As I focused on getting the chores done as fast as possible, I wasn’t thinking about how to make the entire process more enjoyable for myself. Since I’m not fond of household work, I typically try incorporating entertainment elements into my routine. E.g., listening to an audiobook or a podcast while doing the chores. At first, it doesn’t sound like a time waster, but if you consider the time looking for the “right” podcast and wanting to take notes, it will add up, believe me 😊. Monotasking over multitasking!
Having a reward in mind after hard work is a good motivator too. Wanting some time to recover and doing nothing is my goal not only for hangovers but all my days. However, on “regular” days, this time is much shorter, averaging around 30 minutes.
We have come to an end for this time. So what’s your opinion on perfectionism? Are you a perfectionist or someone who wants to get simply things done?
Light & love,
Liis