It is Time to Stop Procrastinating

You are going to love this blog. Why? Because procrastinating is something that catches everyone out in one way or the other for something or the other whether we realise it or not!

Here’s the proof. Is there something that you said you would do about two years ago, that is still on your to-do list? An idea you have done nothing about? Let’s not go back even as far as 10 or 15 years!

Our excuses may be as long as my arm, yet, in another few years, that thing will still be on that list…But not after reading this blog today. So here is why we procrastinate.

##1 We are waiting for things to be perfect.

Let’s be frank, if you want the first edition of your magazine to be the best magazine of all times, and therefore keep perfecting the magazine, it will never ever be published.

Just let that sink in for a minute….

Don’t get me wrong. I know that sounded harsh. Of course, you don’t want a magazine full of mistakes on every other line. But, if there is a typo, will it be the end of the world? How many of your readers may even see it?

I remember being the editor of our first church magazine. Boy, I went over that publication with a fine tooth comb. When it came out, there were the several mistakes glaring at me like a wet duck. I was not happy about them, however, we had achieved something…the magazine was out…and people were reading it…mistakes et al. By the time I handed over my role some years later, there were no typos.

The truth is, there is always room for improvement. And that is how it is meant to be, anyway. You don’t want your best to be Issue 1. You must strive to improve each time. Magazines look slicker with each edition. You should see what that magazine looks like today nine years on compared to our first edition. However, I am still very proud of what we produced.

So don’t wait for the perfect conditions. The Bible says that the farmer that waits for perfect conditions will never plant, if they watch the clouds, they will never harvest. So there you have it. That is in Ecclesiastes 11:4 by the way!

##2 Fear of making a mistake

Still not convinced you may be procrastinating? How about the fear of making a mistake? Does that resonate with you somehow? Perhaps you say you are not a risk taker hence the reason you have not taken that leap on that project. But you know you are the best person for the job. Why have you not done it?

You have not published that book because you wonder if it will be a flop. The truth is you don’t want to invest your time, energy and resources because you simply don’t want to make a mistake.

The question to ask yourself is this…Which will cost you more in the end, the mistake or the regret of not doing what you know you should do? Of course, I am not saying one should be reckless, but this is about following your heart, that leading in your spirit to do what is right. As you do, courage to overcome the fears will rise up in you.

3 Over-thinking

I don’t tend to use this word much at all…i.e. overthinking. However, when it comes to procrastinating, we can be ‘overthinkers’. Now, listen up, there is a time for thinking and meditating. I am not advocating we just nosedive into something or get into a project without having given any thought to it.

But to think over something for far too long, is just mental energy that could have been turned into physical energy into getting it done! It is that simple. Once we have thought well over something, lets get on with it and not end up writing a thesis over it!

##4 Lack of motivation

The longer we procrastinate, the more we run the risk of running of de-motivation. We need the M word to get moving on things especially those boring things that we have to do but procrastinate over. We just got to get up and do it, really.

Promise yourself a reward for doing it. Something like a treat or something. Get someone to be on your case. I ask Chuck to do that sometimes when I can’t seem to get moving on something. I tell him to come down hard on me, nag me even, bless him, which he finds hard to do all the same! However, I get the point with his gentle reminders, and just get cracking on it in the end.

##5 Laziness

You are not going to be happy with this one. But believe it or not, if we are honest, it is another truth. In my humble experience, after ‘Fear’, ‘Laziness’ seems to come second, or at least somewhere up in the list, as to why we procrastinate.

Come on now, you got to agree with me! All those ideas darting in our heads, why have we not done anything with it? Because it may mean us waking up earlier or going to bed later. It means us expounding a bit more energy than chatting on social media! So what is the cure for laziness? Sorry there is no magic pill but we all know what to do!

##6 Lack of planning

OK, I know I mentioned earlier about overthinking. And somewhere in all that current of thoughts one would expect plans to emerge. Invariably they may do and if they do, how coherent are they? Do we even write them down? Or do the thoughts and plans just continue doing their marathon brain swim?

Lack of planning leads to indecisiveness. And if we are indecisive, then of course, we cannot even make a start. The result? Procrastination.

So here’s what you do. Get a pen and paper or IPad or whatever! Get something to write during those thinking or meditating time. It is a secret, trust me on this one, …if you want an idea to come, you need writing material. Before long, ideas will begin to flow a great deal of the time. They just gravitate to writing material. And the ideas and plans will not be interrupted by you having to go find a pen and paper. Or IPad!

##7 Finding excuses

I have already mentioned this right at the start, but it is worth its own heading. Yes, our excuses can be one major reason why we are procrastinating.

Excuses make us weak says Pastor Chris Oyakhilome. So true. When we make excuses, we unconsciously give room for the excuses to take root in our lives hindering our progress.

Nothing is so embarrassing as watching someone do something that you said could not be done – Sam Ewing.  So let’s avoid embarrassment and be careful what we tell our boss the next time when we say it just cannot be done! Ha ha.

Just so you know, I did not procrastinate writing this piece today. And here is one last thing. Bill Gates said he would always ‘hire a lazy person to do a difficult job’ at Microsoft ‘. Gates said a lazy person will find an easy way to do it! Could that be one benefit of procrastination however? According to Mr. Gates, yes. But laziness is not going to get the lawn mowed so lets take on what we have shared today. Clear the garage of all that stuff that has been stuck there since the Queen’s silver jubilee. Publish that book. Make that trip to see your grandma in Australia.

As Nike would say, Just do it!

About The Author

Zoe

Zoe met Eze (Chuck) in the 14th year of what turned out to be an 18 year ‘journey’ with mental illness. They got married less than a year of meeting with Zoe fully knowing Chuck had a diagnosis of mental illness. In the 18th year, Chuck defied the odds of mental illness. A consultant psychiatrist signed him off the mental health system with a bill of NO MENTAL ILLNESS. The consultant was so amazed by Chuck’s astonishing recovery that he even questioned how Chuck was diagnosed with mental illness all those years before, in the first place! Today Chuck is free from medication, its dependency and hospitalizations. Zoe’s award nominated book, DEFYING THE ODDS, chronicles the highs and ‘lows’ of this journey. Zoe, often writing from the standpoint of a caregiver, clearly understands that mental illness does not only affect an individual challenged with the disease, but also families, marriages and society as a whole.

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