Doing nothing is a greater sin that doing something suboptimal. But if you're doing something suboptimal, then you're likely to bring it up in a conversation s

Doing nothing is a greater sin that doing something suboptimal. But if you're doing something suboptimal, then you're likely to bring it up in a conversation since what you do is on your mind. This creates an unfavorable incentive system where you get punished for doing suboptimal things even though you aren't punished for doing nothing. Suggested solutions: 1. have designated work hours. Become upset with yourself if you don't work during those hours. (If your school/job sucks, don't be afraid to snooze or cut corners during that, if you can get away with it, so you'll have more energy for your self-designated work hours.) 2. when someone criticizes you, suck it up. It's pretty clear to me that criticism is more valuable than praise. Ask the person who's criticizing you what you should be working on instead. If they're getting to you, ask what they've been working on themselves. (Don't ask this unless you have to, because if you do they'll probably stop criticizing you, and you want all the criticism you can stand.)