When you’re very busy, it’s tempting to try to cram productive activities, like responding to email or thinking through decisions, into any small crack of time. This could be when you’re standing in line at the supermarket, waiting for a presentation to start, or in the five minutes between finis...

You can buffer yourself against the stress of feeling rushed and overloaded if you recurrently pair simple sources of pleasure with particular activities you’re not as excited to do. Pair pleasure experiences, like a favorite snack, with ones that feel more stressful.

Compartmentalize: When engaged in tasks or parts of tasks you actually enjoy, make sure to focus on them exclusively.

Premack’s principle: Use an easier behaviour like running an errand as a reward for a harder behaviour like writing a complex report.

Add physical decompression rituals to your day, perhaps when you wake up, go to bed, or take a bathroom break.