A short but sweet “insight” post from the folks at 37Signals:
Nothing gets you more focused on solving a problem than actually having that problem.
I’d like to offer a corollary:
Trying to solve a problem you don’t actually have is a waste of time better spent on the problems you do.
I’ll admit, I’m absolutely wretched at this, though I am getting better. I like problem solving, so I tend to look forward into the future in which a myriad of problems might occur, and think through how to solve them all. In the end, analysis paralysis wins the day.
This is a pertinent issue for language learners (especially the sort of learners — like me! — that surf the web reading about learning). There’s this idea that everything has to be planned out in advance, and the planning often overtakes the learning in importance. Coming up with — and endlessly debating — the “right” method starts to spend time that you could be spending learning, when really doing something — anything! — is more important the the method you use.
I know that I’m guilty of over-thinking things out loud here — i.e., the Simplified-Traditional character debate, when the real answer is probably “whichever one you need right now” — but the truth is the only problem that matters is the problem you’re facing right now — everything else can be solved or worked through when the time comes.
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I’ve had the same problem. I think there were several weeks in which I spent more time browsing through my school’s course catalog thinking about all the interesting majors I could declare than I did actually studying.