You know that feeling. When there is something that needs doing but always finds its way to the bottom of your “to do” list. You just don’t feel like doing it because you don’t know where or how to start. You put it off time and time again, and the feeling grows. Until at long last you get round to doing it. Usually because you have run out of time and have to. But procrastination isn’t all bad, in fact creativity can come about as a result.
Interestingly, when you do get round to doing what you put off, you often find it took far less time with far less effort than you thought it would take. You feel relief and even a sense of achievement. Furthermore, you may ask yourself why on earth it took you so long. Why the delay and why the angst. You may even go down the road of criticizing yourself for putting it off.
Procrastination – Stop beating yourself up over it…
Maybe it is the way it supposed to be…
How many times have you done something that you’ve put off, and completed it in less than half the time you thought it would take? A classic for me is when I have an important report or letter to do. I leave it until the last minute to write, and yet still manage to get it done. Usually with little or no editing, in time to meet the deadline. In fact some of my best writing is done when I’ve almost run out of time.
This happens because…
The majority of creative work occurs on the inside, ticking away in your subconscious mind…then when action is required WHAM! Away you go at top speed with such efficiency …
Just because you haven’t started doesn’t always mean you haven’t started…
The inspiration for a new book I’m intending to write, the title and relevant sections or chapters, came to me one morning last week, I woke up and in seconds I had the entire idea… It took less than 5 minutes to jot down as a rough copy (which I did immediately after waking so I wouldn’t lose it and would then have to ‘think’ about how it was) and I have a structure of content to write… no writers block, no sitting in front of a blank page for hours… It all took a couple of hours yet I’d been putting it off for months…
Had I started back then I would have spent hours upon hours thinking and wouldn’t have enjoyed doing it half so much as I just wasn’t in the mood.
The key is this…
When you get the inspiration, then it is the time to act… Whether it’s planning a holiday, writing a report or book, or making that telephone call the content has already been worked out in your mind and that time is the perfect time to act…
Until the next time,
PS Remember, if you are prone to procrastination, ease of the self criticism a little. Allow yourself to visualize doing the task you are putting off. You will know when the right time is to act – you will feel inspired and motivated, and find that you’ll act with speed and efficiency.
