Oftentimes, while we are procrastinating, we launch into a series of thoughts about our work or our predicament that seems worthwhile…like —
- if only I had my red pen, then I would be able to do this better
- last year would have been a much better year for me to handle this
- since this is only the beginning of the semester, I am not in any danger of falling into my old patterns
- I'm being smart by avoiding this, because I won't have to deal with any scary consequences of getting my work done
On the surface, these ideas seem pretty innocent, harmless even. My problem with these thoughts is they leave us empty. With nada. Nothing. Zilch. I have begun to call these types of thoughts “zero-value thoughts” because they add no value to our ability to get things done. They make us believe we are engaging with our work while filling our mental space with…well…filler. Zero-value thoughts block us from figuring out the next best way to start our work and convince us to keep standing still.
Take stock of your thoughts the next time you are about to start something new. Write them down. You can even rate them on a scale of zero to 100, with 100 being “bada bing bada boom!” Are your thoughts getting in your way or are they moving you forward? Once you are able to identify your zero-value thoughts, you will be able to make more space for truly productive ideas. Good luck!
Feel free to share your favorite zero-value thoughts in the “Leave a Reply” section below.
