Have you ever had a hard time getting going on tasks? 

You know they need to get done. It’s not procrastination, per se, and it’s not laziness, either. 

Your inability to move forward on items looming on your to-do list comes from your thoughts, emotions, feelings, and hang-ups.

This can be simply from approach-avoidance, lacking energy, your motivations, or, quite frankly, it’s your mind’s way of protecting you from pain.

What pain? It could be simply the pain of the unknown, the difficult, or emotional trauma, either self-inflicted or that came from the past, quite possibly, you’re letting someone else’s judgment about you hold you back. 

On their own or compounding, these things are holding you back from doing what you know you should be doing, but there’s this mental hangup involving the thoughts that have you stuck like your legs are in cement. 

If your emotions and feelings and their underlying thoughts are getting in the way of putting one foot in front of the other, why not challenge them using Socratic Questions?

At the bottom of this article is a free Socratic Questions download.

What is Socratic Questioning?

Socrates believed in improving himself in all things by focusing on reason.

In our case for Socratic Questioning, we’re using questions to tightly focus in on THE reason why you may be hesitant to resist outright creating or getting going on goals, tasks, and objectives.

By shining a light on the why behind the things you do, you can expose what hangups or could be holding you back or, conversely, why you might enjoy doing one task over another. 

Based, in part, on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), the method of asking yourself thoughtful questions, you can examine ideas and challenge your own assumptions about your productivity habits. 

This method is particularly useful for those who struggle with getting started on tasks, especially if you’re neurodivergent and find traditional productivity advice and systems challenging to implement.

Identifying Thoughts to Target

To use Socratic questioning effectively, you need to focus on one thought at a time related to your productivity challenges. 

Specifically, look for thoughts that trigger strong emotions or seem particularly important to you.

Again, you may find these thoughts have a negative sentiment, and likely, that’s even the point you need to do this exercise. 

To discover underlying thoughts, you’re asking questions to the reason behind why you may be holding back being productive.

Two important tips using Socratic Questions:

1: Noticing Your Emotional State 

Pay attention to your mood and energy, especially any sudden changes in levels, when thinking about tasks towards your productivity. 

If you notice a shift, pause and dig deeper to identify the thought behind why you’re thinking this way.

Example: You feel a wave of anxiety when thinking about starting a project. 

Ask yourself, “What thought just went through my mind to cause this feeling?”

2: Ask Yourself Directly What is Behind This Thought

Instead of guessing which thought is most important, ask yourself directly. 

Consider listing out several thoughts you have about your productivity and choose the one that feels most impactful.

Example: “I often think, ‘I’ll never finish this on time,’ ‘I’m not smart enough for this task,’ or ‘I always procrastinate.’ Which of these thoughts is most distressing or impactful for me right now?”

Step 1: Explore the Evidence for the Thought

Before challenging a thought, it’s important to understand its origins. How strongly do you believe this thought? What experiences support it? 

Approach this exploration with curiosity and openness.

Exploration Questions:

• What experiences have led me to this belief about my productivity?
• What facts seem to support this thought?
• What is the evidence to support these thoughts or beliefs?
• How long have I believed this about myself or my abilities?
• Is this thought based on my beliefs, or someone elses?
• How strongly do I believe this thought is true?

Tip: At this stage, focus on your understanding of this thought. Do not immediately try to change the thought, you’re just getting it out there. Be compassionate with yourself as you explore.

Step 2: Challenge the Thought

Now, use Socratic questions to examine your thought more objectively. Look for cognitive distortions, consider alternative explanations, and identify any unfounded assumptions.

Example Prompts for Socratic Questioning:

• Were there times you’ve been more positive or had more energy to do this task at hand?
• Is your hesitation to do the task based on facts or just thoughts and feelings?
• Could there be other explanations for why you’re making this task more challenging for me than it should be?
• If a friend were in my situation, hesitating to do this task, what would I say to them?
• Am I making any assumptions about my abilities to step up and do what needs to be done?
• Is your hesitation in doing this task due to something you’ve been told or a belief you hold in yourself?
• Can you find evidence about doing this task that would be supportive of just starting it?

Tip: Remember that challenging long-held beliefs about your productivity is a gradual process. Be patient with yourself.

Step 3: Adopt a New Thought

As you challenge your old thoughts, work on developing a new, more balanced, and adaptive perspective on your productivity.

Here are some suggestions:

1. Summarize the Evidence 

Review all the evidence you’ve uncovered, both supporting and contradicting, and do the following:

• Critically evaluate all the evidence, accepting any new ideas that support your ability to start tasks.
• Prioritize your honesty and accuracy in the assessment of your ability to start and stay on tasks.
• Aim for beliefs about the things you can accomplish, and what’s holding you back, while it may be difficult, is yourself.

Realize, too, that while others may have had less struggle or maybe are more mentally put together, they’re no better than you. If others can accomplish things from small to big, so can you.

2: Synthesize the Evidence

Condense your new understanding into a concise, rational thought, and create a statement about how you are productive.

Old thought: “I feel worthless, this is why I procrastinate and can’t get anything done.” 

New thought: “While I sometimes struggle with my energy and feelings, I know I’ve accomplished things in the past and, if I focus on just starting, I can improve my productivity.”

Remember, adopting new thoughts about your productivity is an ongoing process. 

You may need to reinforce these new perspectives through practice and additional techniques.

Challenge Your Thoughts Using the Socratic Questions

I’ve created a downloadable worksheet to help you explore Socratic questioning for yourself. 

This tool will guide you through the process of identifying, challenging, and reframing thoughts that may be holding back your productivity. 

By choosing one task, you’re trying to work on, explore, and really examine your thoughts, negative or positive, to understand more about why you’re doing them.

This will also help you understand why you may procrastinate or have approach-avoidance in doing even simple things.

Download Socratic Questions now to start your journey towards more productive thinking!

Download Socratic Questions for Productity Insights

What’s Holding Your Productivity Back?

Do you have hangups or issues with traditional productivity systems and looking to optimize your life’s goals, objectives, and dreams?

Get in touch!

Send me a message or get on my calender, and let’s get going.