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I still remember the look and the feel of the cookies in my college dorm’s candy machine. Great big sandwich cookies filled with vanilla cream.
The perfect thing for avoiding homework. The perfect thing for gaining twenty pounds while avoiding homework.
College was the place I learned to procrastinate, and food was my chosen vice. Instead of studying for tests, I would eat.
The idea was that if I could just get a little treat to study with, then studying would be more fun. And of course it was more fun—for about five or ten minutes. But then I finished the cookie and the fun was over.
This started a pattern that lasted for more than thirty years. Have a hard job? Put it off. Hope it goes away. When the situation becomes desperate, break down and do it.
Not a very efficient way to live life.
Thanks be to God He is able to break us free from bad habits no matter how long we’ve been enslaved by them. After years of sporadically renewing my mind in this area of my life, I am finally learning how to set goals and accomplish them.
One of the ways I renew my mind is to ask myself the procrastination questions in The Renewing of the Mind Project or I Deserve a Donut (And Other Lies That Make You Eat) whenever I don’t feel like working. Here are the questions from The Renewing of the Mind Project:
9 Questions That Will Help You Stop ProcrastinatingÂ
- What would you like to accomplish? Be specific.
- Why don’t you want to work on that right now?
- Based on past experience, what usually happens when you tell yourself you’ll do a job later?
- If you put this off now, when do you think you’ll end up doing it? (Be honest.)
- In the long run, is the procrastination life the good life? Why or why not?
- If you want to finish this job, will you eventually have to make the sacrifice to work on it?
- What would you gain by doing it right now?
- What’s the first thing you need to do if you want to work on this job? (Example: Get out your notebook, open the computer file, look up the telephone number, etc.)
- Why don’t you do that right now and see how it goes from there?
Note: If the job seems overwhelming, try breaking it into smaller steps. Each step should be fairly easy and non-intimidating. After breaking it into steps, block the whole project from your mind and focus on one step at a time.
P.S. Click here for Bible verses on procrastination.
Question: Do you procrastinate? Do you have any good tips for overcoming procrastination?
I used to procrastinate, but now I’m the opposite. I’ve used the type A traits to do the difficult and dreaded things first. Even the discipline in writing, I force myself to do my weekly Bible study before I allow myself to write anything else. The joy and peace in that discipline is supernatural. Good tips!
Thanks, Floyd. That’s encouraging that you have overcome it. Your joy and peace remark reminds me of Hebrews 12:11 – discipline isn’t fun, but afterwards it produces the peaceful fruit of righteousness. Any time I’ve established a new habit (or broken an old one) the process of growth has been stressful and often unpleasant, but once the new habit is established, it really does produce peace and joy.
I’m not to the peace and joy level yet in my breaking free from procrastination – but I can at least get a glimmer of the light at the end of the tunnel now. :)
I am not a procrastinator anymore. Well, not much anyway. Simplifying my life & focusing on the few priorities I feel are God’s focus for me right now has made all the difference. He gave the ability & the desire. This remedied my procrastination.
Having just a few priorities helps me a lot too, Kari. Especially with writing, I get overwhelmed if I’m working on too many projects at once. Ideally, it’s best if I’m just working on one!
I have never been able to have just one going on. But, I have gotten better at focusing in on one at a time. Having my idea book where I right down random thoughts and ideas helps me capture my thoughts before they get away or turn into something unhealthy.
An idea book – that’s a great idea. Will have to implement that!
These are great steps Barb. I especially love # 9 and your added note (breaking jobs to smaller pieces). That’s how I’ve been working on my book.
For some reason i thought writing a bigger book should be a fairly easy job, (everyone seems to do it so effortlessly!). But it’s turned out NOT to be as easy.
Asking my self “what can i do now” helps; even if i can only put in 200 words for the day, that’s enough (some days there are no words to write and i extend grace to myself :) it beats beating myself up!)
Also breaking down the process. i get tired thinking about the chapters to be written, the edits to come. Blocking out the big intimidating picture and working on the small steps really helps.
Thanks for the reminder today. Feeling rejuvenated already to put in some work tonight!
LOL, I also think writing books should be easy. Why is that, Ngina? Are we crazy or just optimistic? :) Another thing that’s helping me with this book I’m writing now is to have a master plan. I had a publish date in mind and then counted back to see what I had to do each week to get it done. That’s helping me do more than I would otherwise have done because now I see that oh, I have to do THAT much each week in order to get it done by that date? Even if “that much” is only a little bit, it still keeps me moving forward and accountable.
i say we are both! lol! I love love the master plan idea. That definitely helps with exceptions and planning.
your post reminds me of the old saying, “how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”
Just start somewhere, anywhere, just don’t do nothing. Doing nothing is equivalent to moving backward. Life doesn’t stand still, you either move ahead or get farther behind.
That only helps me sometimes, other times I have to remind myself that I am NOT my own. I was purchased with the costly price of Christ’s blood and therefore my wants go under God’s. My comfort comes after God’s glory. I will answer to Him. While many are content with resting on His grace and not moving farther, I don’t want to live that life. I Have lived that life and it didn’t bring any greater fulfillment. So I might as well be about my Fathers business.
lol, I hadn’t heard of the elephant saying – good one! I am learning that with projects. I used to think I couldn’t do hard things – now I’m realizing you just start with something really bad and slowly it gets better if you keep chipping away at it. But it doesn’t get better if you give up and stop chipping – which is what I always used to do.
glad you liked the “old saying”. It’s one I have to tell myself repeatedly. I tend to get bogged down with the chipping and forget that there is an end in sight. It was easy with some things, like college, I knew there was an end. But other things seems to be a continuous process without a defined end and that is what I stumble with.
I suppose on the continuous process things the hope is that it will get easier – that more of a habit will be developed. Or that there really is an end in sight – it’s just so far out there you can’t see it. :)
I think the only end is when my time here is over…
Well, yes, at least there’s that! :)
This is fabulous, Barb. So glad you didn’t procrastinate on this. I shared it!
Thanks, Melanie. I appreciate it!
Yes, I do procrastinate! In fact I just went to grab a snack that I really didn’t need before reading this post! My tip for avoiding procrastination is to make a list of what I need to do and then prioritize it. Then I just try to stick to the list and get things checked off.
That’s so funny. Did you still finish the snack? :) I often procrastinate by reading people’s blog posts. There are lots of opportunities for procrastination as a writer! I love your procrastination tip. I do much better when I have a prioritized list, especially when it’s a short doable list. Just need to remember to do that every day – both the list part and the short doable part.
I did but it was just a couple of nuts ;)
:) well, we all need a little protein. It helps us think better. :)
Great post, Barb. I tend to procrastinate with things I don’t like doing, namely, admistrative tasks or calling about the car insurance, etc. It’s often the little things I put off. But I’m learning :)
I also procrastinate with things I don’t like doing. The crazy thing is that the job may only take 10 minutes and I procrastinate! Much better to just get it over with. Oh well. Little steps! :)
I know you are so right: I think it’s going to take so long but it only takes 10 min. Perspective, huh?
Me too, Dave! Great point.
I procrastinate and think most people do as well.
One thing I do to overcome it is by thinking about the results or outcome of the thing I should do. When I think about the feelings and accomplishment that will come from doing that thing, it motivated me to take action. Great thoughts in this post!
I don’t think I ever do that, Dan – I’ll have to give it a try. It sounds like a good idea!
I am such a sucker for procastination (and have a killer weakness for chocolate. Not a good combination). That last note you make about breaking things into small steps is the thing I’m learning to do. It’s helping, but I’ve still a little ways to go with it. May have to try out some of those questions. ;-)
I’ve also struggled with procrastination, Micah. I’m finally learning how to overcome it a bit. The questions help. I also pray through some Bible verses that i posted a few posts ago. That’s great that you’re breaking the jobs into smaller steps – that also helps me!
I love this, Barb. I think the first step is one that so many don’t even process through – which is the fact that they are procrastinating in the first place. We’re so good at justifying it: I just need a break, Let me clear my head, etc.
But once we unveil that true though pattern, these questions help us to see reality and really get to the bottom of it.
Thanks, Loren. Often when i find out why I’m dreading the job that automatically makes me not mind doing it because I can see that that’s a crazy reason for dreading it.