Have you ever had so much on your plate that you felt immobilized…as if your feet were stuck in cement ?
You just can’t seem to get to it. You have a plan in the morning and the wheels fall of the bus before you get started…eventually you have joined the Club of Procrastinators. Have you ever thought PROCRASTINATION was robbing your life, your dreams, your accomplishments? There are always things that we would rather do than what we need to do. I have a new grand baby who is so much more fun to spend time with than the work projects to complete.
Researchers say people procrastinate because of:
1. The perfectionist in you
2. Not enough time
3. Not knowing where to start
4. Tackling something uninteresting
5. Not feeling like doing it
6. Something being too hard
7. Fear of failure
8. Fear of success
That just about covers the gamete doesn’t it?
I’m not sure that I agree with all the negativity around the word procrastination…but I try to be mindful that if I’m not careful it can prevent me from accomplishing who God intended for me to be.
Procrastination seeps into my world…
When I allow my feelings to overcome my faith — such as feeling inadequate in what I am trying to accomplish
When I fail to see how God is working in my life —I may be trying to accomplish things MY way (I find this not to be so successful) and I become discouraged and have a tendency to flounder which leads to putting things off
When I focus on my circumstances which always makes my life more challenging; diminishes my faith and increases a fear of failure
When I have taken on more than I can realistically accomplish — the over achiever in me
When I am exhausted
Some find success in procrastination… if so, I say go for it, but if you notice your success being delayed and your full potential being untapped take a look at a word that I have found leads to success — Perseverance. Remember that saying, “A quitter never wins and a winner never quits”. Perseverance is not underrated.
Here is the Traveler’s plan of action to persevere:
When I flounder, scripture helps me gain a stronger foothold on how I stand…in or out of the cement.
James 1: 2-4 reminds me to: Consider it pure joy, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Think about how and why my life’s journey is being derailed…find grace in my circumstance…take a breath…and regroup.
Make a Manageable Action List each evening for the next day and prioritize it by importance (what is manageable for one person may not be for another) You can always add to the list if you complete it early.
Chunk my work…(not chuck my work). Break a large project into pieces. When working with teachers, I talk about breaking a project into manageable chunks…it helps insure not losing your mind, completing the project, and seeing success in what is being done. (example: don’t decide to clean out the clutter in your house…decide to clean out the clutter…one closet at a time)
Check items off when complete as everyone on needs an “Attaboy”.
Strive for consistency and follow through with Perseverance. The more consistent we are…I believe we will see a new pattern in our workflow evolve.
My prayer for you this week is to move forward and accomplish something that has been on your list for a long time. I guarantee you will have a smile on your face because of your perseverance. Send a comment through the this blog telling me what you accomplished.