Honestly, I felt kinda dumb staring at those grid puzzles last week. You know the ones – squares, triangles, dots, all needing to be filled just right. My brain just froze up, like hitting a brick wall early in the morning. I knew I had to change something. Instead of trying harder puzzles straight away, which felt impossible, I went backwards.
Step Back Before You Leap Forward
Rummaged through my old puzzle books – found the truly beginner stuff. Stuff I thought was way too easy years ago. Like those simple pattern sequences: circle, square, circle, square… what comes next? Obvious, right? But guess what? Started there again. Today. Not aiming for genius level, just aiming to actually finish one without rage-quitting.
- Set a Timer (For Real This Time): Grabbed my phone, set it for just 10 minutes. Not for speed, no. Just to force myself to start. That blinking timer was less scary than the blank puzzle page.
- One Piece at a Time: Picked one single puzzle type. Ignored the others screaming for attention. Grid deduction? Fine. Just that. Looked only at the rules for that specific type. No mixing. No multitasking. That felt… manageable.
- Used Actual Pen and Paper: Sounds old school? Too bad. Clicking buttons on my tablet felt too easy to erase mistakes. Scratching things out with a pen on paper? That forces you to see the dumb moves. Had a whole section crossed out – turns out I’d filled half of it wrong because I misread the rule icons. Felt stupid, but hey, that’s the point. Saw the mistake.
Staring at Walls (Literally)
After stumbling through two beginner grids (slowly!), I hit another block. Mind wandered to the laundry basket. Instead of fighting it? I looked away. Walked to the window, stared at the brick wall opposite for a solid minute. Maybe two. Stopped thinking about dots and lines completely. Came back, glanced at the puzzle again. Suddenly one clue – the one I’d circled three times – made sense. Walking away wasn’t quitting; it was rebooting. Finished that grid in like 90 seconds after that wall stare. Felt weirdly powerful.
Before logging off tonight, I tried one puzzle level I tried and failed miserably at last week. Last week: total confusion in 3 minutes. Tonight? Took me nearly 15 minutes. But I finished it. Was it fast? Hell no. Was it perfect? Probably not. But did it fill in without me tearing the paper? Yes. Small win. Huge feeling. The “easy” stuff practice earlier? Definitely helped my eyes and brain understand the shapes and rules faster. Less guessing, more seeing.
Key takeaway today? Don’t be proud. Go stupid simple. Use a real pen. Stare at walls when stuck. Celebrate filling a grid, even slowly. Baby steps make the path.