Have you ever noticed that sometimes the busier you are, the more time you seem to have and the more productive you are? There are limits to that of course: if you work sixteen hour shifts all the time (like my mom), then you really don't have time for anything but working, eating, and sleeping. However, I'm talking about the difference between having a schedule where you have to be places at certain times and having no obligations almost everyday. When you have a schedule, you have a finite amount of time to get tasks done, but when you don't, you have the entire day--the entire week--to do those same tasks.
I read a quote by Lucille Ball recently which said "If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do." After a while of having nowhere to be, I have come to appreciate the truth of those words. I tell myself that I will exercise, practice, work on my paper, work on my blog…*looks away sheepishly* everyday; there is nothing stopping me, but I don't. Usually I exercise in the mornings, but lately I have been telling myself that I have all day to do it, and it is better to exercise later in the day so that I can eat a good breakfast and digest it. That turns into "I'll wait until about 2:00, because that is when I have my lowest level of energy, so I need a boost." Which turns into "I'll exercise super hard tomorrow." Thus, the circle of procrastination continues.
I've never been the type of person who is good at forcing myself to do things right away, so having deadlines, however much I hate them, is essential. I've heard it said that procrastinators are often perfectionists, and between the labels "perfectionist" and "lazy", I think it is pretty obvious which word I would rather tattoo on my forehead.
It really is true though, many times I put off doing something because I want it done right, or I am too embarrassed to continue on to the next step because I haven't done something right in the previous one. For example, if I someone gives me six tasks and tells me to email them when I get done with them, oftentimes what happens is I will get done with five of them but for some reason the sixth does not go according to plan. Oftentimes the reason the last task has not gotten done is in some small (or big) way my fault, so in my mind I should not contact that person until I fix it. Otherwise, they will see what a failure/burden/procrastinator/etc. I am. As a result, the problem only gets worse. If you have enough of those situations build up, you just start to feel really crappy about yourself.
So, in the end we all have a choice: continue doing what we are doing and feeling badly about ourselves, or attempting something tiny to change it. I am a big supporter of the latter option and a firm believer that I, for one, can change. Moreover, if I don't like something about myself, I have an obligation my own sense of dignity and happiness to take action. Once you get past that part, the question becomes how.
I know I have a lot of problems and bad habits, and some of them might never go away. However, I guess I can start by getting busy and giving myself a schedule. It's 7:00 am and I've already written a blog post, so I think that is a good start. At least that is one less thing to feel guilty about not doing; now off to the next…and believe me, there are plenty of them right now.
Do any of you have the same problem as me? Do you have any tips/tricks that work for you? Let me know in the comments, because I'm pretty sure that I could use them, and I am probably not the only one.
Gettin'r Done,
Rachel
I read a quote by Lucille Ball recently which said "If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do." After a while of having nowhere to be, I have come to appreciate the truth of those words. I tell myself that I will exercise, practice, work on my paper, work on my blog…*looks away sheepishly* everyday; there is nothing stopping me, but I don't. Usually I exercise in the mornings, but lately I have been telling myself that I have all day to do it, and it is better to exercise later in the day so that I can eat a good breakfast and digest it. That turns into "I'll wait until about 2:00, because that is when I have my lowest level of energy, so I need a boost." Which turns into "I'll exercise super hard tomorrow." Thus, the circle of procrastination continues.
I've never been the type of person who is good at forcing myself to do things right away, so having deadlines, however much I hate them, is essential. I've heard it said that procrastinators are often perfectionists, and between the labels "perfectionist" and "lazy", I think it is pretty obvious which word I would rather tattoo on my forehead.
It really is true though, many times I put off doing something because I want it done right, or I am too embarrassed to continue on to the next step because I haven't done something right in the previous one. For example, if I someone gives me six tasks and tells me to email them when I get done with them, oftentimes what happens is I will get done with five of them but for some reason the sixth does not go according to plan. Oftentimes the reason the last task has not gotten done is in some small (or big) way my fault, so in my mind I should not contact that person until I fix it. Otherwise, they will see what a failure/burden/procrastinator/etc. I am. As a result, the problem only gets worse. If you have enough of those situations build up, you just start to feel really crappy about yourself.
So, in the end we all have a choice: continue doing what we are doing and feeling badly about ourselves, or attempting something tiny to change it. I am a big supporter of the latter option and a firm believer that I, for one, can change. Moreover, if I don't like something about myself, I have an obligation my own sense of dignity and happiness to take action. Once you get past that part, the question becomes how.
I know I have a lot of problems and bad habits, and some of them might never go away. However, I guess I can start by getting busy and giving myself a schedule. It's 7:00 am and I've already written a blog post, so I think that is a good start. At least that is one less thing to feel guilty about not doing; now off to the next…and believe me, there are plenty of them right now.
Do any of you have the same problem as me? Do you have any tips/tricks that work for you? Let me know in the comments, because I'm pretty sure that I could use them, and I am probably not the only one.
Gettin'r Done,
Rachel
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