108 Bargara Rd
Bundaberg East, Qld, 4670
"STRONGER TOGETHER" is a weekly column where Tanya explores key issues. This week, Tanya discusses what she calls 'weekend adulting fatigue' and why some tasks feel harder than they should.
By IMPACT Community Services Managing Director Tanya O'Shea
During my downtime, I’m starting to suspect I’ve developed a very specific, highly advanced condition: ‘Weekend Adulting Fatigue.’ Or put more simply, by the time the weekend arrives, my desire and capacity to make even basic life decisions appears to have quietly left the building.
Instead of focusing on personal admin that is both important and necessary, I find myself doing almost anything that doesn’t resemble my weekday job.
It presents in curious ways.
Last weekend, for example, I absolutely could not bring myself to complete my enduring power of attorney paperwork. Nor could I manage the relatively low-stakes task of reviewing my bank statement and cancelling a handful of subscriptions we never use.
Instead, I baked Anzac biscuits.
Not just a quick batch. A considered batch. I researched the perfect golden syrup ratio, debated chewy versus crunchy, and stood guard at the oven like a contestant on a baking show no one invited me to.
The kitchen smelt like nostalgia and triumph.
My legal affairs, however, remain untouched.
From there, I moved seamlessly into reorganising the pantry. This felt urgent. Critical, even. Why were the lentils sitting beside the tin of corn? Why were there three open packets of rice?
I decanted. I labelled. I alphabetised, all with quiet intensity.
And therein lies the problem.
There’s a particular kind of fatigue that sets in when everything feels administratively heavy. Not physically difficult, but just… hard. Tasks like calling your mobile provider because the chatbot won’t answer your very reasonable question. Or reviewing your super statement to check how much you’re paying in fees, because you know, somewhere in the back of your mind, that you should.
We don’t avoid these things because we don’t understand them. We avoid them because they carry a strange emotional weight. They ask for decisions, analysis, accountability, and occasionally, confrontation. Even something as simple as cancelling a subscription requires energy and mental bandwidth that you can’t quite access on a Saturday afternoon.
So, we pivot.
We choose tasks with a clear beginning, middle and end. Tasks where the outcome is visible and immediate. A pantry can be sorted. Biscuits can be baked. Lawns can be mowed. A sense of accomplishment can be achieved. No fine print, no password resets, no on hold music.
But eventually, the incomplete tasks rise to the surface.
Perhaps the trick isn’t to eliminate procrastination entirely (that seems ambitious) but to recognise it with a bit of humour, and a bit less guilt. To accept that some days are for tackling the meaningful, important tasks…
…and some days are for reorganising the spice rack.
Tomorrow, I’ll tackle the will.
Today, I have excellent biscuits.
