[Method] Super Smash Bros. unlocked a novel way to keep me on task while organizing my messy apartment
It has always been a struggle to keep my living space tidy. Laundry pile-ups. Dirty dishes. Drawers filled with knick-knacks, paperwork. Empty cardboard boxes and bubble mailers from impulse purchases. All converging in a swirling vortex of disorganization that's left me paralyzed and overwhelmed. Not to mention the guilt and shame.
"Why can't I organize my living space like other people can?" and "Why can't I simply focus in and clean up this mess in one flew swoop?" are among the many questions that ruminated in my mind as I beat myself down and made little-to-no headway on my situation.
But yesterday, I decided to push back against my self-imposed mental blockage and actually get some cleaning done. That's when the idea popped in my head.
In an unconventional spin on the Pomodoro method, I turned my TV on, booted up Super Smash Bros. Ultimate on my Switch, and started a tourney with myself and 31 CPU entrants.
It was simple: shuffle the brackets, set each match for 5 minutes, and let the whole tournament play out.
Before each match, I picked one thing in my space I wanted to tackle and focused all my energy on that task while the match played out on screen.
It helped to have the announcer bookend each session. The "READY? GO!!" helped me jump into the task at hand, while the 5-second countdown at the tail-end of a match gave whatever I was doing at that moment some low-stakes urgency. I'd throw my hands up whenever time was called like I was doing a Master Chef challenge.
And there it was! I did something actionable and took a small step towards a cleaner apartment! At the end of each match, I could take a little break, get water or a snack and when I was ready, I started the next match and let it play while I moved on to whatever I wanted to jump to.
And then, every once in a while, it was time for me to play a match and I could reward myself with a longer break.
In addition to keeping the tourney going, I kept a written list of things I accomplished after each match no matter how small or simple they were. A reverse to-do list, if you were. Two simultaneous methods to track progress and keep me motivated to continue!
I'm not done yet, but I've made so much more headway in a couple hours than I have in a long time. Hope this inspires you to try this method or give you fun ideas to engage your brain during big home projects!