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Building Momentum with a Sufficiency Mindset: Tackling Procrastination, One Step at a Time

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In our last post, we explored Dr. Russell Ramsay’s “Touching the Task” approach—a powerful tool for initiating action by physically engaging with a task, even in the smallest of ways.

But what about when the root of procrastination isn’t just about not wanting to start—it’s the fear that you lack the capacity to begin and don’t trust yourself to see things through to the end?

If you’ve ever found yourself paralyzed before even starting, questioning if you have the energy, time, or belief in your capacity to follow through, you’re not alone.

Dr. Ramsay’s work on ADHD and productivity offers a game-changing perspective:

Instead of starting from a mindset of insufficiency,
begin with a mindset of sufficiency.

By affirming that you have enough — time, energy, focus, belief, or desire — to take the next small, tangible step, you can unlock a cycle of forward momentum.

In this post, we’ll dive into what it means to start with a sufficiency mindset and how pairing it with “Touching the Task” can help you move from intention to action.

What Does It Mean to Start with a Sufficiency Mindset?

At its core, a sufficiency mindset is about focusing on what you do have, rather than what you lack. It’s a shift from focusing on the totality of the task—which often feels overwhelming—to focusing on having enough for just one small, manageable action.

Starting with a sufficiency mindset means you’re saying to yourself: “I have enough [ time, energy, focus, belief, or desire] to take this one step forward.”

Rather than asking, “Do I feel completely ready?” or “Can I finish this whole project?”—questions that often leave you feeling inadequate—you’re affirming that you have enough of what you need for what’s directly in front of you.

The Pitfall of Starting from Insufficiency

Many people unknowingly start from an insufficiency mindset, focusing on what feels inadequate in relation to the end goal.

This mindset sounds like: “I don’t have the energy to tackle all of this right now” or “I’m not in the right headspace to do it perfectly.” By applying a sense of insufficiency to the entire task, you can feel defeated before you even begin. Dr. Ramsay describes this as a common pitfall for those with ADHD, as waiting until everything feels perfect or abundant enough often results in procrastination and a cycle of self-doubt.

In contrast, a sufficiency mindset affirms that you have enough to take a single step, which is often the key to overcoming inertia.

By choosing this mindset, you prime your brain to seek ways to move forward rather than reasons to stay stuck.

Three Key Steps to Starting from a Sufficiency Mindset

Acknowledge the Habit of Insufficiency Thinking
Recognize when you’re focused on the totality of a task, telling yourself you don’t have enough. This habit can appear as thoughts like, “I’m too tired for this” or “I’m not ready to do it right.” Acknowledging this mental barrier helps you understand that these thoughts often keep you from even the smallest start.

Affirm That You Have Enough for Just One Step
With a sufficiency mindset, your goal isn’t to feel completely ready; it’s to feel sufficient for just one “touch-the-task” action. Affirm, “I have enough energy to [touch the task]—to open the document, to wash a few dishes, to reread the last paragraph.” This isn’t about tackling the whole task; it’s about finding the smallest forward motion.

Focus on Forward Motion, Not Perfection
Instead of looking for the perfect conditions, focus on the simple action that gets you moving. This mindset encourages progress rather than perfection.

As you accumulate small steps, you build momentum and gradually shift your self-view from someone who’s “stuck” to someone who’s “moving forward.”

Examples of Applying the Sufficiency Mindset with “Touching the Task”

Let’s look at how pairing the sufficiency mindset with the “Touching the Task” approach can help you get started, keep going, and move toward completion.

Completing Household Chores
Scenario: The kitchen sink is full, and you’re exhausted.
Sufficiency Approach: Rather than thinking, “I don’t have the energy to do all these dishes,” affirm, “I have enough energy to wash five plates.”
Result: This small start builds momentum and reinforces that you can take action, even incrementally.

Starting a Lengthy Work Report
Scenario: You need to write a report, but the scope feels overwhelming.
Sufficiency Approach: Recognize the thought “I’m not ready to start this whole thing” and affirm, “I have enough focus to open the document and review the last paragraph.”
Result: This small engagement lowers resistance and begins the momentum toward completion.

Getting to the Gym
Scenario: You planned to work out, but you’re tempted to skip it.
Sufficiency Approach: Acknowledge the mental resistance and affirm, “I have enough energy to put on my workout clothes.”
Result: By focusing on this small, achievable step, you increase the likelihood of following through.

Making Time for a Hobby or Personal Development
Scenario: You’ve been wanting to learn guitar, but each day you delay picking it up.
Sufficiency Approach: Instead of saying, “I don’t have time to really learn it,” affirm, “I have enough time to pick it up and play one song.”
Result: This simple action starts building confidence in your commitment to the hobby.

Addressing Financial Tasks (Overdue Bills, Budgeting)
Scenario: Financial tasks have been piling up, creating a cycle of avoidance and shame. You think, “I can’t handle this right now.”
Sufficiency Approach: Recognize the excuse and select a small action—perhaps opening your budgeting app, locating your most recent bank statement, or group your bills together . Affirm, “I have the courage and capacity to look at one bill.”
Result: This small step helps break the cycle of avoidance. Each action toward your financial goals reinforces your capacity to handle these tasks without overwhelm.

Building Self-Regulatory Efficacy: Reinforcing Self-Trust Through Small Steps

Starting from a sufficiency mindset isn’t just about getting things done. It builds what Dr. Ramsay calls self-regulatory efficacy: the belief that you can manage and complete tasks even through discomfort or tedium. Self-regulatory efficacy reinforces self-trust over time as you prove to yourself that you can take action, move forward, and see tasks through to completion.

Each time you affirm, “I have enough,” you’re training your brain to trust in your capacity.

Rather than waiting for ideal conditions, you’re building a pattern of engagement that slowly transforms the way you approach and achieve goals.

Final Thoughts: Shifting from Resistance to Forward Motion

The journey from knowing to doing doesn’t require perfect motivation or abundant energy. Instead, it starts by choosing a sufficiency mindset—affirming that you have enough in you to take one small step. Paired with “Touching the Task,” this mindset creates a series of small actions that build momentum and reduce resistance, reinforcing that progress is possible, step by step.

As you practice this approach, you’ll find that each small action contributes to a growing pattern of self-regulation and self-trust.

By choosing to start from a place of adequacy, you’re no longer waiting for the perfect moment; instead, you’re moving forward with what you have, one step at a time, and creating the evidence that you are someone who can start, keep going, and ultimately finish what matters.

Next Steps: Practical Application

Taking small steps toward meaningful change becomes more impactful when you apply these strategies to your own life. Here are some reflective questions to help you identify and practice pairing a “Touch the Task” action with a Sufficiency Mindset, so you can start building momentum in the areas where you’ve felt stuck.

1. Identify a Specific Task You’ve Been Avoiding:

  • What’s one task or goal you’ve been putting off?
  • What thoughts or feelings come up when you think about starting or completing it?

2. Define a Small, Tangible “Touch the Task” Step:

  • What’s the smallest action you can take that physically engages you with the task?
  • For instance, if it’s related to exercise, could you start by simply putting on workout clothes? If it’s writing, maybe it’s just opening the document and rereading the last few lines.

3. Affirm Your Capacity with the Sufficiency Mindset:

  • The key is to start with a mindset of sufficiency and then physically move to take the ‘touching the task’ action.
  • Instead of letting your mind indulge in what you don’t have, affirm something your mind cannot deny: “I have the [energy, time, ability, belief in my capacity] to do this [touch-the-task] step.”
  • What specific phrase can you say to yourself that reinforces this? (For example, “I have enough focus to read one page” or “I have enough energy to set up my workspace.”)

4. Reflect on Your Experience:

  • How did it feel to take this initial small step?
  • Did starting with a Sufficiency Mindset help reduce resistance?
  • What did you notice about your capacity to engage with the task?

Use these questions as a way to connect the ideas in this post with your real-life experiences, helping you reinforce the belief that you can make progress—even one small step at a time.

In the next blog post: The Art of Closing and Opening Loops: A Mindful Way to Overcome Overwhelm. Have you ever felt mentally exhausted by all the tasks and reminders that linger in the back of your mind? This feeling of mental clutter is often the result of too many “open loops”—unfinished tasks, unanswered emails, unresolved projects—draining your mental energy. But with a mindful approach, we can learn to manage these loops in a way that reduces overwhelm and keeps us focused.

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