You have a project you have to finish by the end of the week. 2 days go by and you say to yourself "I still have 5 days but I'll slowly start working on it. Tomorrow."
Tomorrow comes by and you work on the project for 20 minutes. Nothing gets done really but you feel fine.
You continue like this until you only have 2 days to finish the project (unless you really push it to 24 hours).
The stress goes up. Now the deadline becomes the only thing you're thinking about.
Cortisol and adrenaline start releasing. You become hyper-focused and finish the project in time. OR you extend the deadline and look like an idiot.
This is the pattern I've been running for years. And I think I learned it in school.
I started to notice it thanks to this course from Dan Koe. I've been working out 6x a week and generally working close to 100%. And let me tell you - something like this will make you learn fast. So shoutout to Dan.
It seems that lowering your dopamine baseline makes it easier to spot this kind of thing.
(I'm writing this newsletter the same way lol)
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It sounds cool. You can relax the whole week, then get "hyper-focused" and finish your project in time.
But it doesn't come without it's cost.
Why Does This Happen?
Your brain prioritizes immediate threats. A distant deadline isn't treated as important. When it gets close, your brain finally releases enough urgency to act.
Cortisol and adrenaline narrow your attention and increase output. That's why it feels productive. But it is extremely taxing on the body.
The stress improves short-term performance, the brain learns:
Wait → Stress → Perform
This leads to a bunch of negative effects that build up over time:
physical tension (neck, shoulders, and jaw start hurting)
fast, not good decisions (creative thinking fades)
you waste days to recover from the sprint
baseline anxiety goes up each time
the brain learns a bad loop
I've experienced all of these. At once. Not fun.
I'm still learning to work with this. Right now I'm creating a better system to manage this and eventually rewrite the pattern I learned early in my life.
I'll update you as soon as I find a good way to deal with this.
If you're interested in the course I'm currently going through - check it out here.
Thank you for reading.
- Joni
BTW
If you need help with systemizing your freelance business or you are simply looking for someone to hold you hand, I do 1-on-1 coaching.
Just reply to this email or message me on X/Twitter.