Have you ever been to a bowling alley where there were bumpers in the gutter? Not on every lane, of course, just some of them. I’ve often seen them used when there are a lot of kids using a lane.
The idea with the bumpers is that they prevent a ball from going into the gutter. The ball can move all over the lane but ultimately must go toward the pins because it can’t fall into the gutter.
This is exactly how INFPs need to approach their productivity.
You don’t need a rigid productivity system. You just need bumpers. Why? Because bumpers allow for movement and flow while keeping you moving forward.
If you’ve ever watched a child bowl on a lane where there are bumpers, you may have noticed the ball swinging between the bumpers, first hitting one side, then bouncing off and hitting the other. But, ultimately, it makes it to the end of the lane and hopefully hits a few pins.
When INFPs set up some mild structures for themselves so that their ball can’t go into the gutter, they can still move and flow between those structures, and that’s where INFPs really get their energy.
Some people get their energy from the structure itself. It makes them feel comfortable, safe, and secure.
INFPs get their energy from the movement and the flow of the ball. It makes us feel enthusiastic, creative, and alive. We just need to have some structure in place so that we hit a few pins at the end. 😉
Let me give you an example of my own bowling alley bumpers:
I enjoy running for exercise. At a minimum, I want to run twice per week. I can do more (and I do other forms of exercise as well), but I want to make sure I’m doing it at least twice.
Instead of scheduling these twice-weekly runs into a calendar, which might be the typical productivity advice, I track them on the calendar. This allows me flexibility while still giving me some accountability.
When I track my runs (by simply writing an R on a paper calendar I have), it not only gives me a visual of when I’ve run, it also motivates me to want to run, so I can write an R on a particular day. 😉
Other than that minimum structure of two runs a week, everything else is flexible. The days and times I run. How long I run or maybe how much distance I run. Whether I run outside or on a treadmill at the gym. This flexibility and variety keeps me interested and motivated to keep running.
In short, my ball can move all over the lane, but it won’t go into the gutter because I have my bumpers up. 😉
Do you have any “bumpers” in your life or work? Feel free to share in the comments. I bet it would be helpful to someone else! (Including me. )
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Amanda Linehan is the author of Productivity For INFPs. She is an independent author, coach, and INFP, who has published six full-length books and has been read in 113 countries. Amanda was a speaker at the INF Summit in February 2020. Learn more about her Productivity For INFPs Online Course on the course page.
Thank you for the article! Love it! I’m an INFP myself and I got you totally. For me, I use also a tracker in a form of an app that grows digital tree when you time your work sessions, and I also do blogging from time to time as well to keep track of myself once in a while.
Awesome! Thanks for reading!