There Is A Downside Too!
“Procrastination is, hands down, our favorite form of self-sabotage.” ~Alyce P. Cornyn-Selby
Do you experience self-sabotage? I do and this morning was a wonderful example of just how I allow procrastination to stop me. I started the day with gratitude, meditation, a tapping on procrastination, etc. I then did let’s beat up Suzie? I think the tapping hit home! After a few tears, some anger, letting off steam on and with Des, a beach walk and a swim in the river as the sea was too rough for me. I reflected on my thoughts and my behaviour and knew I need to stop the procrastination NOW. I have too many unfinished projects, too many irons in the fire! Swimming in the cool clear water cleared my head and I heard my heart whisper it’s time to let go and move forward. I knew what I needed to let go of. I felt a spring in my step as I walked home. I could feel a plan of joy emerging. Today I will complete a project that I have been putting off for months!
“Procrastination is one of the most common and deadliest of diseases and its toll on success and happiness is heavy.” ~Wayne Dyer
Last week I asked the question Does Procrastination Block Your Abundance? Yes it is blocking mine and the comments below plus Carol Look asking us on the training call last Friday what is the upside to you not completing a project…… reinforced this for me.
- Nathalie Villeneuve commented that her procrastination had hurt someone and that got me thinking how had my procrastination maybe hurt others?
- Patricia Goslen said:I love the question what is the upside of X ( our negative behaviour) and what is the downside of having the job done
- Sandra said Absolutely! That’s my answer to your question. Procrastination does get in my way.
- The upside of procrastination for me is I might have to have a real plan of action, how will I manage success? That is really crazy as I have been a successful teacher and trainer, an artist, I ran a successful textile art business and I have been very successful in the past year of healing myself, so much so that my Dr who initially scoffed at my alternative regime now calls me a model patient!
- The downside is I have blocked my abundance. I have many incomplete products, an incomplete website and the list tires me. Des commented today I don’t have my abundance coaching in a place where people can find it. Well that is about to change.
The short answer to the question what is the upside of procrastination is, that there is no real upside, just the illusion that things will somehow get better if we keep putting off taking decisive action.
Emergings the poem I wrote 20 years ago that included the painting I shared in the post last week includes one of the emotions that comes from procrastination. This is the incomplete project I am working on today, A new cover for the e-book version that will be available for sale here on the blog and at The Emergings Book
Do you have an unfinished project that you have been procrastinating on that you will finish today?
First of all, we should be clear about our priorities. If so, delaying something in favor of a more urgent and important matter is fine. Once we are clear about this, we can then be ever clearer of our procrastination.
One reason why we procrastinate is fear. We are afraid of what the consequences would be and so we tend to delay it. Sometimes is just the fear of getting more responsibility. We must face procrastination with courage and accountability.
Hi Rob,
I like that- to face procrastination with courage and accountability. Yes when we are accountable there is no space for procrastination. I like your blog- great content
I love the quote about procrastination being a form of self-sabotage. It’s very true. Procrastination can easily become a very bad habit if you’re not careful.
yes that is so true that is can become a very bad habit if you allow it to run your life. I thought the quote was wonderful too.
Every time I see your profile photo, I smile right back at you! What an infectious smile. You must be so much fun to be around.
Now yes, about that procrastination. I’m having fun visiting blogs on the Top 50 list instead of some chores that need doing. Oh well, this is too much fun. “Liked” your page and look forward to visiting again soon.
Hi Galen,
how delightful to have you visiting and what a wonderful idea to visit the top 50 PD blogs- i know there are many I am not familiar with.
I love that about my photo, i wonder if I will ever recapture that moment on camera- yes I am fun to be with, although I cam be serious too
with love
Suzie
For me there is an upside. I often take action too quickly. Putting a little space between the thought and the action can create clarity.
Hi Joanne and welcome, I know that feeling- I know taking action quickly can be good , often the things I take fast action on are still waiting int he wings for completion
Suzie, I recognize everything you say and I’m learning, slowly I would add, to alter my procrastination habit one tiny thing at a time. By doing one thing that I’ve been putting off for whatever reasons, and I don’t really care what they are, I feel somewhat virtuous, as though I’ve climbed a huge mountain.
Feeling good is what counts for me. Continuous procrastination doesn’t feel good, doing one little thing does. Here’s hoping procrastination keeps playing my game. 🙂
A timely reminder from you Suzie – thank you.
Love Elle
xoxo
Hi Elle, how delightful to see you here, Yes I agree with you , doing one thing at a time, sorry one tiny thing is a great step forward. yes feeling good is so important. If we don’t feel good we are usually backsliding
Love
Suzie xxoo
Suzie, being that I’m a Virgo, I tend to not procrastinate but instead dive right in with a plan, a timeline, and a task plan. HOWEVER, I have learned over the years that gaining some perspective before a rapid course of action is not always procrastination; sometimes a decision does need a little bit of contemplation. As a wise, older co-worker once told me, sometimes you gotta let it dry: if you mess with the paint while it’s still drying, you might just make a bigger mess. “Let It Dry” isn’t easy for me, but sometimes it is mighty sage advice.
Hi Kimba,
I need you to come over and share your system, planning – I am good on the big picture but the details fails me. I love you analogy to letting the paint dry. I now take pictures of a painting i have just completed while wet so If I go back and decide maybe it needs something else- which usually just means overkill. learning when something is enough – another skill or virtue?
Sometimes I think procrastination gets a bad rap. It’s not that I disagree with any of the traditional sentiments about the downside, I just think that sometimes we sacrifice due diligence for the sake of making progress at all cost – especially if we’re fearful of being criticized by others. I guess what I’m trying to say is that if we weren’t sometimes so eager to get peer approval by sharing our goals with others, we wouldn’t end up cutting corners on the planning and then end up stalled in procrastination-mode. (oh dear, I feel a blog post coming on!)
Yes Marquita, I will look out for you blog post. What you are saying is rings bells for me and comes back to self-love- being true to oneself, believing that we are enough and that prompts me to complete what i started with this post- took more time than I thought.
Oh, this is such a great topic and one that I tend to run away from. I am a procrastinator when it comes to my own success. I will not procrastinate on all the needs of my family, my responsibilities, the bills, etc….but, I do procrastinate on my success. There is no upside to it because my work is valuable and a lot of people will benefit from it. So, I guess in a way, I am hurting people by procrastinating and not getting my work out there in a way that would benefit so many. Thank you for this great kick in the butt.
Hello my namesake, yes I am a Suzanne too 🙂 I relate to what you have written especially about procrastinating on one’s own success, What is it that stops us? I can see that this is a developing series that i see leading back to the topic of I am enough and self love. Happy to give you a kick up the butt. now back to completing the named project from this post. ♥
I’ve been thinking about the subject of procrastination a lot lately. It all boils down to us making the right decisions and what i find will totally shift this bad habit is my new focus of ” RAISING MY STANDARDS”… I am taking a course with David Neagle right now and on week 6 of the course…that is what we must do in order to break the barriers of procrastination (and other barriers). I’ll right about this some more soon!
Great share Suzie!
Nathalie, I love we seem to be on the same page. Yes I like raising my standards. I will look forward to your blog posts. Yes raising our standards is also keeping the commitments we make with ourselves. Sometime that is the challenge. 🙂