Ever found yourself adding tasks you’ve already completed to your to-do list, just for the satisfaction of checking them off? I should as hell have. That feeling of accomplishment is all thanks to dopamine, the brain’s reward system. Whether it’s completing tasks, receiving social media likes, winning at gambling, or having a drink, dopamine plays a role.
To boost your dopamine levels in a safe and healthy manner, turn to your to-do list. Embrace “microtasking” to increase dopamine and enhance motivation.
Keep reading to discover more about dopamine and how you can hack your brain to reward yourself with a chemical boost.
Dopamine, much like endorphins, serves as a neurotransmitter that can enhance overall happiness. However, while endorphins are primarily associated with pain relief and are released during activities such as exercise and consuming spicy food, dopamine has a broader role.
Within your nervous system, neurotransmitters facilitate communication between synapses. Dopamine is synthesized through a two-step process: first, the amino acid tyrosine is converted to L-dopa, which is then further refined into dopamine by enzymes.
Although dopamine is not solely responsible for pleasure, it does evoke an intense and rewarding sensation. This dopamine rush can be experienced through various means, particularly when accomplishing tasks or achieving goals. However, there is a downside: this same dopamine rush can be triggered by substances like alcohol, drugs, and gambling, leading to addiction. People often associate the dopamine rush with these substances, fostering dependency.
Fortunately, indulging in to-do lists doesn’t pose significant side effects, aside from perhaps a strong inclination to purchase more notepads and office supplies.
This neurotransmitter also plays a role in:
- Blood vessel function
- Heart rate
- Kidney function
- Lactation
- Learning and attention
- Mood
- Movement
- Pain processing
- Sleep
As dopamine activates the brain’s reward center, completing tasks can become surprisingly enjoyable. The desire for that pleasurable feeling motivates you to tackle the next item on your to-do list.
However, there’s a catch: your brain solely craves those dopamine rewards. It won’t push you to tackle less appealing tasks like filing taxes or scrubbing bathroom grout. This tendency can lead procrastinators to delay even the simplest tasks, only to realize later that they weren’t as daunting as anticipated. That’s dopamine at work.
Enter microtasking. By breaking down larger tasks into smaller, more manageable steps, you can capitalize on your brain’s neurotransmitters.
Start by reviewing your to-do list. Alongside major tasks, you likely have smaller items listed. For a quick dopamine boost, tackle a couple of these smaller tasks. But what about those daunting big items?
Microtasking enables you to deconstruct major tasks into bite-sized steps, allowing you to tick off each one and leverage your brain’s chemistry.
Identify the significant items on your list—those with intricate or multiple steps. Then, on a separate sheet of paper, list out each microtask required to complete the larger project. For instance, a research paper might involve tasks like checking citation styles or proofreading the bibliography.
This approach serves two purposes. Firstly, it facilitates getting started, especially if the task feels overwhelming. Completing even a small microtask, such as verifying citation styles, can provide a sense of accomplishment and trigger dopamine release, motivating you to continue. Before you know it, you’ve completed multiple microtasks, propelling you toward crossing off the major item on your list—a truly rewarding achievement.
While you may have heard similar advice before, understanding how dopamine fuels productivity sheds light on why breaking tasks into smaller steps is effective. So, embrace your task list with renewed enthusiasm, one microtask at a time.
Check out one of my popular blog posts about mental health and psychedelics.
About the author : Janna Breslin
