On being productive with little or no motivation

On Tuesday I, like a large portion of the country, was a ball of energy and nerves throughout the day as the USA vs. Germany World Cup game approached. Generally I am pretty good at channeling my excited energy (or at least aware of the need to do this, which is half the battle) but by 2pm I had, had enough.

My energy made me move quickly and by lunch I had knocked out all of my essential to-do list along with a solid chunk of items that really weren't needed until later in the week. I had plans to leave work a little early and watch the game with friends but I was mentally leaving my desk well over an hour before it was reasonably acceptable to bow out of the office.

 

So what did I do?

 

I put on my headphones, turned up Spotify, and took almost ten compliance assessments.

Why?

1. This kept me productive since these assessments needed to be completed
2. This didn't require tons of concentration and was virtually mindless
3. This seemed to speed the afternoon along

Not that a compliance assessment is something that you should do totally mindlessly. But when your energy is lagging or your head is in another place sometimes it's best to work on projects that require little critical thinking rather than pushing for something more rigorous.

Now, what to do this afternoon as the three day holiday weekend approaches...