You can’t get away from procrastination

August 25, 2010

stop procrastination 22 You cant get away from procrastination

I procrastinate.

A lot.

It’s not that I don’t want to arrange my overflowing closet, or don’t want to proof that 150-word invitation … it’s just that I don’t feel like it.

It’s not urgent, appealing, or motivating enough for me to dive right in and take care of it.

I recognize when I make excuses or simply ignore a task I don’t want to do – like that’s going to help with the actual completion of the task at hand!

It’s not that I sit idle either – there’s plenty of other stuff to stick my fingers in.

I just don’t do what I am “supposed to.”

No matter what brilliantly written blog posts or self-help articles say, nothing seems to spur action.

Some people’s advice is to plunge head first – take the bull by its horns, so to speak.

That way instead of ignoring the problem and letting it sit around, you will have taken care of it even before you had the chance to procrastinate.

Others say to dechunk the task into bite-sized bits, so it doesn’t seem overwhelming.

Once you can break it up into manageable sections, the sense of frustration is replaced by a sense of achievement.

Yet others advise one to steer away from perfection. Just do it – doesn’t matter if it’s not up to par.

Then there are lists.

Prioritize, evaluate, make your environment productive, set reminders, blah, blah, blah, yada, yada, yada…

I read these pearls of wisdom, sigh, and go back to my procrastinating routine.

A little voice in my head tells me I must complete this task now.

But a bigger, more adamant voice says, I am not ready, yet.

The only advice I’ve found on the World Wide Web that tells me it’s okay to be human – it’s alright to put things off on the backburner until you feel prepared to do it, and do it well — is Tanveer Naseer’s post on How to Deal with Procrastination.

I have been meaning to pin it on my cubicle wall – right behind my computer.

Some day I’ll get around to doing that.

16081BD1A60533E0F1173D28DE4F0D3F You cant get away from procrastination

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9 Responses to You can’t get away from procrastination

  1. Dave RoyNo Gravatar on August 25, 2010 at 10:24 am

    This fits me to a T. Are you living inside my head? :P

    The one thing I do have to learn, though, is realizing exactly what *does* need to be done rather than put off, because occasionally I find myself procrastinating on something that ends up coming back to bite me in the butt.

  2. Cynthia Ann BriggsNo Gravatar on August 25, 2010 at 2:51 pm

    Love this. I have a copy of "Getting Things Done" that is sitting… somewhere… only partially read. I am learning my procrastination is necessary to the process, and just a part of who I be.

  3. Tanveer Naseer on August 26, 2010 at 6:44 pm

    Hi Mansi,

    Thanks for the wonderful mention in your piece. I’m glad to hear it resonated with you and I appreciate your sharing it with your readers.

    When it comes to procrastination, I do believe it’s important to remember that while we might be stuck in neutral at times, the simple truth is that eventually we do get the work we need to do done. Worrying about not getting around to these tasks or trying to force ourselves to do something we’re clearly not in the zone to perform is far from being a productive mindset.

    Thanks again, Mansi, for the mention.

  4. MansiNo Gravatar on August 27, 2010 at 12:31 am

    Absolutely, Cynthia — it IS a process and I am tired of people telling me otherwise.

  5. MansiNo Gravatar on August 27, 2010 at 12:31 am

    You finally realized that’s where I camp :-)

  6. MansiNo Gravatar on August 27, 2010 at 12:34 am

    Thank YOU, Tanveer.

  7. Bryan GiraNo Gravatar on September 2, 2010 at 2:43 am

    Mansi,
    I’m right there with you. My mantra has always been, "Why do today what I can put off until tomorrow" but I’m FINALLY beginning to realize that it’s ‘passion’ and ‘desire’ that are truly what’s needed for me to get something accomplished, checked off of my ‘list’.

    Oh yeah, that and a MAJOR DEADLINE! Nothin’ like a good swift kick in the butt to get me goin’. ;)

    • MansiNo Gravatar on September 3, 2010 at 1:52 pm

      :-)
      Life’s like a ticking time bomb. That’s something we often forget.

  8. 9 steps: work less and do more | First Impressions on October 20, 2010 at 11:43 am

    […] 2: Stop procrastinating I’d written about my issues with procrastination and how there’s no getting away from it. Well, Robin says that if a kick won’t spur you into action, he’ll get an Ostrich […]



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