The Donut Guy Blog

We have a big week next week.  A lot of my year culminates in going to Gen Con, and participating like a madman there. I get to see friends, meet with companies and designers and this year I get to take my kids for the first time. I’ve known about this for a year and I’ve had all that time to plan ahead. Here we are, a few days from leaving, and I have pre-exhaustion.

Pre-exhaustion is what I am calling the feeling of being exhausted ahead of this type of big event. So much planning and mental weight goes into making the schedule and making things make sense for any type of large scale activity. For me, I am combining this planning for Gen Con along with the large scale of things I’m doing for work. The amount of things to do in advance is staggering. For me and my mental state, they get overwhelming and hard to deal with.

Part of the reason is that I can visualize all the different things needed to do in advance of next week. Preparing what I need to do at the event, preparing what needs to happen when I am away at work, preparing how my house will run while I am gone, and just preparing for afterward. My brain allows me to see all of these moving parts, which is an advantage. Seeing them though and knowing how much there is can make an overwhelming desire to go inward and mentally tire myself. 

Having a mental spicy brain, I think I struggle more with this issue. I’ve been able to define it more as an adult, but just because I can sense it doesn’t mean I can instantly cure it. I am a Completionist so when there is things to do, I beat myself up not doing them. That’s not fair and I know it because I know there’s no way I can do everything. Unfortunately, it does not lessen the blows as they come in.

That’s where I found myself last night. Feeling down by the number of things on the checklist. Those feelings manifested as a struggle to get started. I can have a to do list but being able to get to it feels like a mountain to climb. I’ve written previously that I always schedule a lot of things and take on a lot. This is where it becomes a downside, and I’ve actively worked on how that manifest in the space. I know my schedule is crazy, and in turn the to-do list is crazy.

What did I do? I talked to my partner. I went to sleep. I got myself rested and try to work it out the next day. Sometimes that’s all you can do. Things will still be there when you wake up, but you’re taking time to get your body and brain in the best place. It can be to be prepared. Pre- exhaustion like any exhaustion means you must rest in order to make it decrease. You have to do the things that will help you energize, including sleep, eating right, and some time on other things. The following day as I eased back into it, I got a few things done, but then played D&D to recharge my brain. Knowing that helps me means I made it the priority.

Being a planner means there can be a lot of exhaustion on any side. I recommend you take time for yourself to rest. Prioritizing and scheduling means prioritizing your rest and scheduling yourself time to do so. Plan that rest so you can check another box that makes you feel good. Now, if you excuse me, I have a lot to do.