Social Facilitation

Hi Frum Minimalists 💛

Last week inside The Frum Minimalism 8-Week Challenge, we learned something that I think every busy Jewish woman needs to know.

Especially right now.

Especially before Pesach.

It’s called social facilitation.

I know.

Sounds academic.

Stay with me.

Story time.

You know that one task you’ve been avoiding?

The insurance form.

The school paperwork.

The cabinet that feels overwhelming.

The drawer that makes you slightly angry every time you open it.

You sit down to do it.

Five minutes later you’re:

• Checking your phone

• Getting water

• Starting something else

• Rearranging something that didn’t need rearranging

Why are we like this???

Now let me change the scene.

You’re sitting in a library

Or at a coffee shop.

Or next to someone else who is working quietly.

Suddenly!

You are FOCUSED.

You are efficient.

You are not wandering.

So, why is it sooo different?

Research time

The concept of social facilitation was first observed by psychologist Norman Triplett in the early 1900s.

He noticed that cyclists rode faster when racing against others than when riding alone.

Later research confirmed something fascinating:

When another person is present, even silently, we perform better on tasks!

Focus increases.

Motivation increases.

Procrastination decreases.

Our nervous system literally shifts when someone else is nearby.

Humans are wired for social accountability.

We rise to the level of the room.

READ THAT AGAIN! TWO MORE TIMES!

This concept is also referred to as body doubling.

Story time.

I first learned about this concept from my Home Reset Bootcamp students.

One of my students posted on our Whatsapp chat:

“Want to declutter at the same time for 40 minutes?”

My students loved this idea and so did I!

Another student Zoomed a friend and did her admin work.

She told me,

“I’ve been pushing this off for a month. I finished in one sitting.”

I used this concept once a week for a month to body double / co-work specific business tasks with my friend Robin Gutman of Monarch Coaching.

(remember her? We had that Coffee & Chat about making time for YOU recently.)

We would get on Zoom. Our cameras were on.

We didn’t shmooze or hock or even talk.

I’m not exaggerating when I tell you…the amount I got done in those sessions was wild.

As I am typing this, I am like “Omg! I should do it again!”

I did things that had been sitting on my to-do list for YEARS!

Because when someone is there, your brain behaves differently.

Client Story time.

I am a Time Management Coach.

(Remind me to write more about this at some point!)

A client of mine runs a successful business.

But she was stuck on one specific project that was very important.

So, during out scheduled a session, she asked if I can just sit there while she did it.

In under 10 minutes it was DONE.

She looked at me and said,

“Why did this feel impossible for so long!?”

This my friends, is the power of social facilitation!!!

If you work, you can use this for:

• Admin tasks• Budget planning• Marketing tasks• Creating content• Inbox clean-up• Returning emails• Planning the week• Any task they keep “almost starting”

One of my clients literally schedules co-working hours every week with a friend, like I did with Robin.

And when you’re at home:

You can use this for:

• Pesach cabinet clean-outs• Toy decluttering• Paperwork piles• Shabbos cooking• Folding laundry• Cleaning out a closet• Organizing photos• Anything you’ve been avoiding

Call your sister.

Put a friend on speaker.

FaceTime your neighbor.

Try it for all areas of your life!

It works everywhere.

Now here’s your tiny assignment.

Pick one task.

Text or call someone, or ask your co-worker, kids or husband:

“Want to body double with me for xx minutes?”

Tell me if you try it 💛