Many of the problems I’ve faced in my life, I actually created for myself. Sometimes it makes us feel a little better in the short term to blame other people or circumstances for our problems, but usually you don’t have to look any further than the mirror to find the root cause. For me, it was postponing action, procrastination just not getting started that kept me mired in underachievement. I used to think that if I simply waited long enough and did nothing, the problem would somehow take care of itself. It never did. Today, I am surprised to find how many people continue to think that way.
In the words of Benjamin Franklin, “Never put off till tomorrow, that which you can do today.” We heard it from our parents, our teachers and we even say it to one aother, but do we adhere to the admonition? Unfortunately, most actually conduct their lives as if it read, “Never do that by that which we can put off till tomorrow.” And, tomorrow never comes, and all the potential, possibilities just seem to waste away. Lives literally ‘fade to black’ like the end of a movie, due to procrastination.
Procrastination is one of the deadliest of diseases and takes a heavy toll on personal happiness. To my way of thinking, happiness and procrastination are totally incompatible. In order to succeed you MUST eliminate the tendency to procrastinate from your life. Develop the habit of not just doing it, but DO IT NOW!
People who procrastinate are always saying things like, “I sure hope things get better” or “Maybe somehow things will work out”. In other words, they’re wishing and hoping, setting up their self-support system that maintains their putting things off behavior. Procrastinators also feel that their lives are boring. Boredom is an offshoot of not doing the tasks that scream for completion. Incomplete actions are a major cause of stress as well.
Think of yourself as too important to continue living with the anxiety caused by procrastination. Plan the next hour instead of thinking of tasks in the long-term. Think in the now. Live in the now. Do it NOW!
Mack Newton
Copyright Mack Newton. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced in any form without the expressed written consent of the author.
