That Anonymous person does it every time.
I very recently have become swamped with matters, both big and small, that I have to take care of. Typically when I get into this type of swamp territory, I start to feel a haze of confusion. What do I do? How much energy to I spend? Will I get anything done? Will I have enough time? Do I care?
Deeper into swamp territory, I start to get irritable, frustrated, insecure, and upset that things aren't magically going my way all of a sudden.
Fortunately for me, I recently found a solution to swamp land. Over a recent long weekend, I listened to the audiobook Essentialism by Greg McKeown. Essentialism is full of helpful reflections on how we use our time, how we make our decisions, and how we choose to lead our own lives. One of McKeown's consistent messages is we have a duty to honor our brief time in this world by resisting the temptation to remain in situations just because. He encourages readers to make the hard decisions about what to focus on, even when there is a cacophony of competing demands and requests.
I highly recommend you read (or listen to) Essentialism. It's the kind of book that will be useful to all Procrastinators. I could not help but decline an invitation I had received a few weeks earlier after listening to the message in Essentialism. Although in my heart I would have loved to have accepted the invitation, nothing else about me pointed towards saying “yes.” I basically knew I was not going to end up going, but absorbing the message of doing what is essential, helped me to get the looming invitation off my plate. {If you are interested in picking up a copy of Essentialism, click on the book image below (affiliate link).}
Now, back to my personal swamp land. I am getting better, gradually, at learning to define what I need to do first when I have a long list of things to do. This has been a big life project for me, as I am not known for my whiz-bang prioritization skills. I tend to lunge at everything all at the same time, rather than to pick a target. Setting a priority, just one, uno, priority, has been helpful in getting things done and sharpening my own work process. I have to be more honest with myself when I'm reviewing my options. And if you don't know this already, I feel honesty is essential to real recovery from chronic Procrastination. (Did you hear the whiz-bang?)
Okay. Now it's time for you to take today and determine what your one priority is. Remember — uno. Then spend the rest of the day orienting yourself towards getting that priority done and eliminating those things that might slow you down or get in your way in reaching your goal. Do as Anonymous does and have time for the things you put first.
Please share your success stories here. I'd love to hear from you. Remember to also follow me on Twitter @ChristineLiPhD for more good words on all things Procrastination.
