- I need to reset my login.
- I need to login and pick a primary care doctor.
- I need to call and make an appointment.
This has two benefits: (1) A series of hours-long tasks get broken down into smaller chunks that I can knock out when I have 15-30 minutes each. (2) My end goal ("Get a flu shot") stays parked in my blocked column where I don't have to worry about it -- I can stay focused on the things that are immediately within my power to do. And that's super liberating! It feels good to knock out a todo list. This process keeps you focused on knocking things out and removes the mental overhead of having to juggle all these little things that you can't really do anything about immediately -- it's being tracked somewhere so you can write it down, keep working on what's most in your control, and come back to that item when it's actionable.
If I ever find myself utterly stuck or blocked on the current task, I can pull up some small quick-win task from the backlog in my kanban to get my mind unstuck. Plus I'm always able to say that I accomplished at least something by the end of the day, even if 80% was spent hunting some elusive bug without producing anything to show for it.