Stop PROCRASTINATING..."Shake things Up"!
As a Kinetix Coach and observer to a few corporate cultures, I am always in awe and amazement as I witness three things manifest through the simplicity and ease of Kinetix: the building of communal support, new discoveries about fellow people beyond their personal profiles, and the realization that happiness and living to one’s personal potential is a personal responsibility. Don’t forget—as a Kinetix Community we all are striving to be a better version of ourselves and Kinetix enjoys helping you experience your potential. Most importantly, I like to drive home the message that only YOU can take care of your needs, happiness and personal success.
With that said and the launch of the newly formulated Kinetix Shake mix (check out Amanda's Blog), I wanted to reflect on a theme that can prevent us from “shaking things up” and limit our true potential—procrastination. Dr. Robert Mandel in Chattanooga, Tennessee recommended a great book called The Paradox of Choice: Why More is less by Barry Schwartz.
I have to be honest; I've been procrastinating finishing this book. Neverthless, from what I have read, the book has been very insightful to my coaching experience. As a society, we are always recreating the wheel which results in an array products and services of similar outcome goals. For example, when our goal is to get and stay in the best shape of our lives, we are bombarded by an abundance of exercise or nutrition solutions when we turn on the television. With so many options, we are oftentimes paralyzed from making even one small decision to move forward in a positive direction toward our goals. Again, the only person that can make your goals become reality is YOU.
When we make decisions on what is the “best”, I have come to realization that 2 things can happen: 1) one may be waiting a long time and/or 2) a person will never be satisfied due focusing on “would have could have should haves” with other choices.
To me, procrastination is normal human experience and results from betraying what is right or betraying your instinct. Oftentimes, I will feel resentfulness, stress, and anxiety when I procrastinate. For example, yesterday, I procrastinated on my performance workout…I chose to betray my instinct of completing my Monday workout. Instead, I rationalized my “busyness” of coaching classes, e-mail and telephone follow-ups, community site stats, report deadlines and presentation preparations, Q2 objectives etc…ahead of what I know is the right thing to do.
As a sat at my desk, stress/resentfulness/anxiety started to build. The thought “I know I’ll feel like crap and my day won’t go well if I don’t get it in”. With these thought in my head, my work day was over…I am sure that if I look back, I know I could have found enough time to complete my workout. Personally, I like to nib stress in the bud. So with that said I closed my outlook, left for the day (after following through with a commitment to Lisa B’s challenge) and had a great workout at home.
I am sure that I am not alone in this example of procrastination. Furthermore, it is normal to experience procrastination through all aspects of life—whether it be positive exercise and nutrition habits, chores at home, or work responsibilities.
Through my life experiences, I am learning that the best thing to overcome procrastination and doing the right thing is immediate ACTION. I have found that I waste less time, am more relaxed and have a better attitude when I take immediate action. Don’t forget that procrastination can prevent you from being the best you can be…you know I feel when you aren’t being at your best.
Life is too short and presents too many enjoyable experiences to waste time. Here are some tips to avoid the stress/resentment/anxiety that comes from procrastination:
• Do the right thing the first time—all the time
• If you need to have a conversation with someone…talk to them now
• If you say you are going to do something…follow through with the timeline you promised
• Don’t compromise your values or boundaries…be okay with saying no
• Make a decision—then commit to your decision—be happy with your decision.
Have a great day breaking away from procrastination and shaking things up everyone!
GB
With that said and the launch of the newly formulated Kinetix Shake mix (check out Amanda's Blog), I wanted to reflect on a theme that can prevent us from “shaking things up” and limit our true potential—procrastination. Dr. Robert Mandel in Chattanooga, Tennessee recommended a great book called The Paradox of Choice: Why More is less by Barry Schwartz.
I have to be honest; I've been procrastinating finishing this book. Neverthless, from what I have read, the book has been very insightful to my coaching experience. As a society, we are always recreating the wheel which results in an array products and services of similar outcome goals. For example, when our goal is to get and stay in the best shape of our lives, we are bombarded by an abundance of exercise or nutrition solutions when we turn on the television. With so many options, we are oftentimes paralyzed from making even one small decision to move forward in a positive direction toward our goals. Again, the only person that can make your goals become reality is YOU.
When we make decisions on what is the “best”, I have come to realization that 2 things can happen: 1) one may be waiting a long time and/or 2) a person will never be satisfied due focusing on “would have could have should haves” with other choices.
To me, procrastination is normal human experience and results from betraying what is right or betraying your instinct. Oftentimes, I will feel resentfulness, stress, and anxiety when I procrastinate. For example, yesterday, I procrastinated on my performance workout…I chose to betray my instinct of completing my Monday workout. Instead, I rationalized my “busyness” of coaching classes, e-mail and telephone follow-ups, community site stats, report deadlines and presentation preparations, Q2 objectives etc…ahead of what I know is the right thing to do.
As a sat at my desk, stress/resentfulness/anxiety started to build. The thought “I know I’ll feel like crap and my day won’t go well if I don’t get it in”. With these thought in my head, my work day was over…I am sure that if I look back, I know I could have found enough time to complete my workout. Personally, I like to nib stress in the bud. So with that said I closed my outlook, left for the day (after following through with a commitment to Lisa B’s challenge) and had a great workout at home.
I am sure that I am not alone in this example of procrastination. Furthermore, it is normal to experience procrastination through all aspects of life—whether it be positive exercise and nutrition habits, chores at home, or work responsibilities.
Through my life experiences, I am learning that the best thing to overcome procrastination and doing the right thing is immediate ACTION. I have found that I waste less time, am more relaxed and have a better attitude when I take immediate action. Don’t forget that procrastination can prevent you from being the best you can be…you know I feel when you aren’t being at your best.
Life is too short and presents too many enjoyable experiences to waste time. Here are some tips to avoid the stress/resentment/anxiety that comes from procrastination:
• Do the right thing the first time—all the time
• If you need to have a conversation with someone…talk to them now
• If you say you are going to do something…follow through with the timeline you promised
• Don’t compromise your values or boundaries…be okay with saying no
• Make a decision—then commit to your decision—be happy with your decision.
Have a great day breaking away from procrastination and shaking things up everyone!
GB
Tags: motivation
Comment
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Comment by Liz on June 17, 2009 at 3:41pm - Another good one, Gerry. Thank you -- love the tips at the end (I just copied them and I'm going to post them as a reminder).
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Comment by Amanda, Nutritionist on June 17, 2009 at 11:22am - Great blog Gerry- and great conversation from everyone above. Such good insights. I have recently learned that often times you don't always need "to act " or "to do" anything. Sometimes you need to to sit and just be. Tough balance, but it can bring powerful, efficient, and effective results. Thanks GB and everyone for sharing!
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Comment by Brian Haas on June 17, 2009 at 11:11am -
For the Cliff's notes version of Barry's book, you can watch his 20 min talk on the subject here:
http://www.ted.com/talks/barry_schwartz_on_the_paradox_of_choice.html
He has some other great recorded speeches on that site, but beware, that site can quickly eat up all your time :)
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Comment by K-Man on June 16, 2009 at 3:34pm
- I've found that in managing people for a living, that we all have a natural rhythm. The problem is that we aren't following that rhythm most of the time. In fact, we are stuck in routined behavior. Basically, the patterned behavior we experience is the result of habit. You've probably figured out where I'm going with this - we have created and continued to operate out from bad habits. So, I see in people everyday certain patterns of behavior that are really not very effective or efficient for the achievement of one's desired outcome. I told my people the other day, "It's not a matter of time-management or organization. It's a matter of whether or not you are being effective and efficient". I told them to get it the habit of asking the two "Es" in everything they do. Another suggestion is to simply identify the things that really are important to - things to do, accomplish and achieve. Then make sure to "chunk" your time. Basically, block off time to do these things and nothing else. And the last nugget I often share, "The Pain/Pleasure Principle". You see people will do more to avoid pain than to gain pleasure. So, when you are in a situation such as, "Do I want to work out?" our brain asks, "What does this mean... more pain or pleasure?" If I work out right now will it mean more good feelings, happiness, a sense of accomplishment, losing one more pound? Or If I don't work out right now, what will it cost me?" These are the three simplest tools we all have at our disposal to help fight the nasty procrastination bug.
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Comment by Coach Hannah on June 12, 2009 at 6:30pm - I absolutely love this blog Gerry, thank you for sharing. I must admit that procrastination is a downfall of mine, so I can totally relate to how you felt after procrastinating with your workout . . . stressed/antsy in the pantsy! You are so right when you say it's all about taking immediate ACTION!! Always do what feels right, and don't turn back!!! That's why I'm headed to the gym at this very moment- I gotta get my workout in before it's too late!!! Thanks for the encouragement, you rock!
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Comment by Katherine Pannell on June 11, 2009 at 11:15am
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Very inspirational! Thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas! I am actually an anti-procrastinator and I hound my husband whenever I see him procrastinating. He read the book "The Now Habit" by Neil Fiore and it has dramatically changed his life.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_b?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=the+now+habit
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Comment by Karen Ann Corrigan on June 11, 2009 at 10:17am
- "Don't be afraid of failing, be afraid of never trying, I really like that.....it is a great mantra. After just about completing week 4, and seeing what I have accomplished in this short time, for the first time in my many years of dieting and trying to get to a healthier weight, I can see that it is possible. The pieces seem to be falling in place. I am also guilty of procrastinating at times, and I truly believe a person has to come to that point in their life, where they truly commit to doing what they know is the right thing.
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Comment by Debby Braudway on June 11, 2009 at 10:15am
- Thank you for the insight. You are so right on! I notice when I get bored, tired or depressed, I tend to put things aside and procrastinate about things. Getting up and doing or moving helps and makes you feel better!
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Comment by Christy Hagle on June 11, 2009 at 10:01am - Great blog! I do tend to be a procrastinator....but have been working on it. My focus has been trying to shift the rationalization of "why I can't get my workout in" to "how can I make it happen." I have had some recent success. Monday was a travel day for me which meant my day started at 3:30 a.m. to make my flight and my day didn't finish until I reached the hotel at 10:00 p.m. My past pattern would have been to start listing all the reasons I couldn't get it done--it's too late---it's been too long a day--I'll work it in some other day this week. Instead I convinced myself that I would probably click on the TV or read a book and not truly go to bed until 10:30 anyway--so I made the decision to strap on my heart rate monitor and hit the gym. And yes it was a long day but I felt a great sense of accomplishment for meeting my fitness K-target for the day.
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Comment by Coach Terry on June 9, 2009 at 2:54pm -
Gerry, I LOVE this blog! Why did it take you so long to write it? :-)
I'm typically NOT a procrastinator. I love the sense of accomplishment for finishing a task, rather than the stress associated with knowing it needs to be done. However...there is one thing that can hold me back. The fear of failure. If I am not confident in my abilities to complete something to my own standards, I tend to procrastinate trying. One of the gifts that Kinetix has empowered me with is the ability to better accept my own failure. I've learned from one of the basic principles of Kinetix, the concept that "Perfection is not a lifestyle". With that in mind, I've become even more productive and have learned to embrace the concept that I have posted on my profile page. "Don't be afraid of failing, be afraid of never trying"
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