1. How do you think you are procrastinating?

Hello, all.

Got a bit behind the eight-ball again, as usual. :) But I did say I was going to talk about procrastination again, and so I am. No lecture, but something to think about. In fact, I am going to make a series of posts about it, and, hopefully, help you with a few tips; nothing earth-shattering or disruptive, but to try to help with  this all-too-common problem.

Here is the first.

1. How do you think that you are procrastinating?

That is the first step, realizing that you are. Some people may qualify procrastinating on something by stating that doing something else was more important.

That may be perfectly true. But does paying for a new dress or pair of shoes instead of paying your rent do you the same amount of good? I really do not think so. You can't really live in a dress or a pair of shoes, although some seem to think they can.

Paying the rent to have a roof over your head may be a pain, but it is also necessary to your comfort. The other two items are necessary to your sense of self, certainly, but in the bigger scale of things, they are only additions to it. Without a roof, you will not be able to see what you appear like, or keep clean.

So this is one way that people need to re-priotorize things in their lives. This is the same with procrastination. You need to understand that, no matter how many ways you may find to put things off, they will still be there at the end, and you will have to deal with them anyway. Maybe after a few threatening letters from your landlords or visits from the bondsman, but the rent will still get paid. Or you will have all the problems of finding a new home, and paying rent still, as well as other costs; to put the electricity on, buy food, shift your things, amongst others. So why not pay the rent first up, and see if you can afford the new dress or shoes later?

There is a sly blessing to that. You may have bought the dress or shoes, got them home and found they were not what you wanted, been on special or something else, so you cannot exchange them or gain a refund. Then you are left with an item you don't want/like/need, rent unpaid, and no other  recourse, apart from to regret what you have done, and panic over the unpaid rent.

This is not as silly a scenario as it might seem. There are many people in the world who have just done that, and spent a lot of time in misery over it. Why join them? There is enough misery in the world without wishing more on yourself in particular.

So accept that you do procrastinate and do something about it. You will feel much better if you do. And remember that we all have a finite amount of time. Someone who seems to have it all under control usually has prioritized her life, and makes time for everything  out of that allotted span.

Why not join her? You only have to take one tiny step first, as she would have. it's easier than you think.