When Insights Make Sense but Action Feels Overwhelming


Read this if you want to get to the end of a self-care article and NOT feel like you need to do anything.


I recently read Scott Young’s article, “Why You Can’t Focus” and I’ll admit, like many of his pieces, the insights made good sense. It proposes that the information environment around us, as opposed to our brains degrading horribly, that could be a key culprit when it comes to struggling with focus. He lays out and handful of specific strategies to reduce distractions and create better conditions for focus AND promotes his Life of Focus program (the guy has to make a buck).

I could see the logic, I could see how his recommendations applied to me—and yet… I stopped at just thinking about it (I guess I did write this blog post but that was really about handing the responsibility over to you, the reader)

It’s not that I didn’t want to take action. It’s just that this strange block showed up, one I’ve encountered many times before. Maybe you have too. You read something insightful, you nod along, it makes perfect sense—but instead of making changes, you move on with your day, including doing the exact opposite of what you just learned.

Why does this happen?

 

Why Acting on Good Ideas Feels So Hard

I don’t think it’s just me. There’s something universal here. We live in an age where we’re constantly bombarded with recommendations to improve our lives—how to work better, study smarter, live healthier, sleep deeper, be kinder to ourselves (and to others). It’s not just that these ideas are everywhere; it’s that many of them are genuinely good ideas. But how on earth are we supposed to action all of them?

Here’s what I’ve noticed about why I (and maybe you) get stuck:

  • Time Pressure: The logistics of actioning even a simple idea can feel like too much when life is already full.
  • Status Quo Comfort: Even when the status quo isn’t ideal, it’s familiar. Change, no matter how small, can feel like extra work.
  • Overwhelm: We encounter so many great ideas that the sheer volume of them feels paralyzing. Where do we even start?
  • Perfection Paralysis: If we can’t do it perfectly or in a way that feels meaningful enough, we hesitate to do it at all.

Scott’s article is a perfect example. I could see exactly how it applied to my own challenges with focus, but the thought of implementing yet another new strategy felt blergh.

 

Making Room for This Modern Learner’s Challenge

I don’t have a tidy solution for this. And let’s be honest, if I did, it would constitute a set of actionable strategies that you’d ignore and I would secretly recommend but not do 😂

What I do think is that it’s okay to recognize this as a modern challenge of being a learner in a world overflowing with information. It’s okay to be kind to yourself and give yourself permission not to optimize every part of your life or to act on every good idea you come across.

In fact, maybe it’s less about forcing immediate action and more about trusting that truly good ideas will find their way back to you. They’ll show up again and again—each time giving you another chance to engage with them. Maybe this isn’t the moment you and I needed Scott Young’s article, but the insights you gained from reading it could be seeds that grow later.

 

Staying Open Without Feeling Overwhelmed

Instead of pressuring ourselves to act on every good idea, what if we reframed the process?

  • Be Selective: Not every idea needs to be actioned. Think of insights as tools. You don’t need to pick up every tool at once—just the ones that fit what you’re working on right now.
  • Stay Open: Give yourself permission to let go of an idea for now, knowing that if it’s useful, it will likely come back into your life when you’re ready for it.
  • Be Kind to Yourself: Sometimes, it’s enough just to learn something new. You don’t have to immediately fix or change everything.

 

A Final Reflection

The vibe of this post is probably strongly influenced by the fact I was listening to a podcast on burnout and self-compassion.

So, leaning into that, let’s make a deal that this post isn’t about giving you more to do. There will be plenty of opportunities for you to listen to me telling you how to live your life.

Maybe it’s about naming the reality that learners today face a constant stream of helpful (and not-so-helpful) recommendations. Maybe it’s about recognizing that part of modern learning is being kind to yourself, balancing curiosity with realism, and trusting that good ideas will meet you where you are—when you’re ready.

If Scott’s article resonates with you, great! Give it a read. But if the thought of making changes feels overwhelming, that’s okay too. Sometimes, just reflecting on the insight is enough for now. The rest may come when it’s time.

 

Posted in
Random Gareth Pontifications

Leave a Reply