You Don’t Need to Fix Yourself to Function

You’ve stared at the blinking cursor, willing your mind to behave. You’ve felt the sharpened edge of expectation — that you must be fixed before you’re useful. Let’s kill that myth now. Because the hard truth is: working, creating, contributing … you don’t need a pristine psyche to do it. You just need presence. You just need to keep showing up, even when parts of you are fraying. In fact, the very cracks might be your strongest signal of relevance.

Think about this: globally, around 15 % of working-age adults live with a mental disorder. ¹ And yet we are told that productivity demands perfection. That patch-up-mode is the only acceptable mode. So you wait. And you stall. Meanwhile the world doesn’t wait for you.

So here we are. Let’s talk about how function doesn’t mean fixed. And how your “broken” bits can co-exist with your doing-good-work. Let’s dig in.

The prevailing lie: fix → work → value

From the moment we’re taught to manage tasks we’re told: organise yourself, clear your head, be ready, then perform. But many of us live in the gap: our heads swirl, diagnosis in hand or not, ADHD’s motor running, depression’s fog hovering — and still we must function. Consider that in a recent U.S. survey, 64 % of workers reported struggling with mental or behavioural health issues and 91 % of those said they were less productive as a result. ² Yet the invisible corollary: they still worked. They still existed. They still delivered. This isn’t rare.

Similarly, studies confirm that poor mental health is clearly associated with lost productivity — but not zero productivity. ³ What we forget is: productivity isn’t binary. You don’t switch from “broken” to “functional”. You modulate.

Broken? Doesn’t preclude functioning

Let’s unpack “function”. Function isn’t gliding effortlessly. It isn’t being flawless. Function is: you show up, you do the work, you keep the contract you implicitly made with yourself and others. You might wobble. You might use the three-or-four-hours rule for creative work because longer bursts collapse you. In your world that rule works. Small bursts. Big meaning.

There is also neurodiversity in these story-arcs. For people with ADHD, for example, “broken” might simply mean the brain’s wired differently — not faulty. Here’s the gift: that wiring brings intense interest, divergent thinking, idea-storming. The problem comes when the culture demands linear, quiet, non-fidgety focus. That culture rewards “fixed” brains. But you? You can function. You can deliver. You can tunnel into something meaningful for a 90-minute session, break, then blitz again. That counts as function.

Why “you must fix before you function” is harmful

Why is the fix-first narrative misleading?

• It delays action. If you wait until you’re “okay”, you might never start. You end up believing you must first “be healed” to create.
• It creates shame. Every misstep gets internalised: “I am broken, therefore useless.” But if you recognise you are a little broken and still useful, shame dissolves.
• It misses the middle way. The path of human beings is rarely straight. The Buddhist idea of anicca (impermanence) reminds us: nothing is fixed, including you. So to wait for the “fixed you” is to chase a ghost.

The philosopher in you knows this: wellness is not a prerequisite to contribution. In neurobiology we know that recovery or functioning often involves adaptation, not “return to pristine baseline”. Holding that as expectation is unfair and unrealistic.

How to work well while still being you

Here are some ways to bridge the “little broken” and the “functioning being”.

Define what “function” means for you

Maybe your function is writing one page a day (three pages a day, even). Maybe your function is deciding one task, doing it, crossing it out. The quantity or “output” is less important than the intentionality. Set a threshold — “I will ship one idea today.” That is functional. That shows up.

Embrace the rule of small windows

Instead of waiting for the marathon energy, plan for micro-slots. Research shows that stress and overload reduce productivity significantly. ⁴ If you know your brain hits fatigue fast, plan your bursts: 90 minutes job → 30 minutes rest. Rinse. Repeat. You don’t need eight-hour sprints. You just need consistent rounds.

Use your brokenness as data, not determent

If your brain floods with anxiety or ADHD distracts you, consider that signal. Your brain isn’t failing; it’s talking. Listen. Are you overexposed? Under-rested? Over-stimulated? Use the feedback. Adjust your work environment. Maybe you turn off notifications, use a Pomodoro variant, sit standing. You adapt. That’s functioning.

Relation with AI and tools

You’re a JavaScript dev, building systems, teaching a child Python. The same logic applies: you don’t need to be fully calm to code; you just need to open the editor and start. The advent of AI tools (chatbots, assistants) means you can lean on them for scaffolding. Rather than using AI to hide your brokenness, use it to augment your working self. Your “imperfect brain” plus “external tool” equals productivity.

Credibility in authenticity

When you write, speak with your voice. That mix of philosophical calm and ADHD-edge is your brand. It’s okay you had ten interruptions during the draft. It’s okay you couldn’t finish the eight-hour session. You still functioned. You still produced. Authenticity resonates more than polished perfection.

Why this matters — for you, for the world

Because the world’s waiting for you. The global cost of lost productivity due to depression and anxiety is estimated at US $1 trillion per year and 12 billion working days lost annually. ¹ Imagine if more people accepted themselves as “functioning imperfect humans”. The stigma lifts. Productivity increases. Creativity flows.

Also, for you in particular — an ex-frontend dev on medical leave, building low-cognitive-load systems, teaching your child, working with Python toward AI copilots — this mindset is critical. You don’t need to wait until you’re “fixed” to build the blog, publish the script, release the video. You just need to show up in the broken-and-meaning mode. That mode is your mode. It has value.

What if the fix you’re chasing is actually the obstacle?

What if you spent years waiting for a version of yourself that never arrives? What if the version you have — this messy, distracted, feeling-kind-of-out-of-sync self — is precisely the one the world needs?

Tomorrow I’ll walk you through three specific practices to integrate your brokenness into your productivity system: micro-method rituals, creative-poise techniques, and AI-mirroring prompts that honour both your brain’s chaos and your mind’s depth. Until then, ask yourself: What good work could I do today, with the self I already have?