Startling Realizations

Procrastination is not my problem. I get things done by the due dates, and I start working on them a few days before they're due. I don't like to wait until the last minute, in fact I hate when I have to. This was all true until I listened to a talk on procrastination. The person said he had a "PhD" in procrastination and was a professional at it. He talked about things I have always known, things I had read about, but another part stood out to me, convicting me as a criminal.

I procrastinate! The things I procrastinate about aren’t just tasks, they are minutes. I don’t want to get out of bed yet. I’m not going to tidy my room today. I’ll just leave that piece of important mail there. I’ll wait another day to deposit my check. I can respond to that text or email in another day. It’s not urgent (or simple). With all that, I ruin my life.

On a task basis, I have two articles due at my newspaper every other Wednesday. To set perimeters around myself, I have to get them done the week before. I end up finally working on them on Friday or Saturday, spending a whole dump of time at once. If I ever work ahead, I end up leaving the bulk of the work until the last minute.

        So, because I start working on the article three or four days before it’s due, it looks like I don’t procrastinate. It looks like I am a very prepared person. However, I have 10 days to work on the article, and I wait until the last two or three to even get started. Because I never spend 6 or 8 hours doing something all at once, it seems to me like I don’t do it, but I do in my own way. Then, of course, I feel bad about having waited so long. It’s an endless cycle. The problem is, procrastination does not just affect my physical life, but every part of me.

       I get emotionally and physically bogged down by so much exertion. I get spiritually weary by not spending quality time with God, and I lose an overall quality of life because of how I approach things. I feel rather sheepish to admit it, but it's true. Maybe I can start working on not procrastinating.

           Read an elongated version of this post in the July/August Deep Encouragement. Email me for details.

       The talk I got these ideas from. I have read most of the books mentioned:

Atomic Habits, Deep Work. (5) watch this if you’re avoiding work - YouTube

Comments

Thoughts on Fragility

What is the most fragile thing? As I put some pencil lead into a mechanical pencil, I wondered if pencil lead was the most fragile thing. But then, there are other thin, tiny things that break easily, like a strand of crystallized sugar. A lot fragile. But, enumerating fragile objects isn’t my point. So, I think the question is, how do fragile things break? Pressure snaps a twig or a pencil lead. Glass breaks when it is dropped. Hot glass breaks when in contact with cold water. Thread breaks when the tension is too great for the strands to handle. Most lightweight things break when too much weight is applied. It depends on the item. I think, people are the most fragile things in the world. I can break with too much pressure or tension. I break when dropped or when drenched with cold water when excited or interested. I also break wh...

Declutter Fever

I got declutter fever. If things are messy, it means two things: the amount of stuff is too much and the organizational system is incorrect. I found all of this is true every time. My room was a bit messy. I had gotten sick, but the stuff just kind of got out of hand. I think I only got rid of ten items, but it cleared up the space I needed in my functional organizing system. I had a couple food items taking up a lot of space in my tiny pantry area. I had not eaten them in three months, which is a sure sign I am not going to eat it in the next three months. I put the non-perishables out for other staff if they wanted it and threw out other perishable food I wouldn’t eat. This gave me the space I needed for the food I currently want to eat. I took out my trash and recycling. I got rid of a few clothing items I don’t like wearing. And, like the little thing it was, I recycled a couple containers, like yogurt containers, which freed up space. It really was only a handful ...

Miracles

A man took a horse that had never been handled, never been trained and began working on it. He tied the filly to his saddle and stroked her face and neck, getting the filly to trust him. At first, all the filly needed to do was let her master touch her—to touch her sensitive areas. Slowly the filly began allowing the master to touch her. She stopped jerking away. She stopped pulling on the lead rope. He worked on one side of the horse, and then the other: touching , rubbing, praising, and pushing the filly a little farther. She would trot alongside and then the other. She would walk in circles. The master took a saddle blanket and began rubbing it on her neck. He rubbed it all over her back and her sensitive belly and rump. Finally, he placed it on her back. He thumped the blanket. Eventually the filly remained calm. A saddle was...

Jubilee's Jottings

Search This Blog