Put A Stop To Procrastination
Procrastination is an assassination of our progress. Do not put off what you can do today.
Procrastination is defined as the action of delaying or postponing something — to put off intentionally and habitually, to defer to a future time. Andrew Mellon called it a "deferred decision": "Indulging yourself at the expense of something you're already committed to doing may feel like self-care, but you're just stealing time from yourself."
A story.
There's a story of a man who saw a homeless woman shivering outside in a thin coat. He didn't make much money and didn't have the means to buy her one, so he went to a local department store and slid a coat off the rack — stealing it — and gave it to her. She was grateful, and he felt good in the moment.
Later, the store reviewed the security footage and found him. The cost of the coat, plus legal fees, forced him to take on a second job just to pay it all off.
Why share this story? It depicts the effect of procrastination. We put off something — steal from one area to give to another — without realizing that what we deferred will cost us more later than if we had simply managed our lives to handle it when it needed to be handled.
Now, before you get a little testy — I'm not here to judge anyone. Those who know me know I'll be the first to admit where I need to grow, and procrastination is something I'm diligently working to annihilate in my own life. I haven't fully arrived, but I'm not where I used to be.
Cindy Trimm says, "Procrastination is assassination of inspiration and kills progression at point blank range!" — meaning it's close enough to aim directly at the target and hit it. When we give in to procrastination, it's as if we're allowing the progress of our lives to be shot at point-blank range.
Why do we procrastinate?
Some common reasons:
Lack of resources or information
Lack of knowledge or expertise — not sure where to start
Bad habits, or lack of organization
Waiting for the "perfect" time
"It's not my job description"
Feeling overwhelmed, with too much on your plate
Convincing yourself you work better under pressure
Simply not feeling like it, and preferring to do something else
Letting "someday" or "later" babysit your responsibilities
Not every delay is negative, though — waiting on clearance or direction from God (before joining a church, for example) is a deferred decision, but it's one we can lean into.
Multiple sources point to the same primary driver: we procrastinate to avoid the negative emotions tied to a task. That can look like fear of not doing a good job, not knowing where to start, lack of confidence, feeling overwhelmed, fear of failure, poor organization and prioritization, or striving for perfection instead of progress. Terri Savelle Foy put it well: "You can't have a million dollar dream with minimum wage habits."
What it costs us.
I've tried to practice the principle that everything has a home — keys, glasses, dishes. Statistics show people waste up to 2.5 days a year looking for misplaced things, and an estimated 5,000 hours over a lifetime. Think about what you could get done with 5,000 hours. Every time I deferred a decision, I wasted time I could have spent on what God actually called me to do. Procrastination costs us — on one end or the other.
Find your why.
Ask yourself why you procrastinate in different areas of your life. Most likely, there's some form of fear at the foundation. Address it head-on with the Word of God — look up what He says about the thoughts you're thinking, and do everything in your power to bring your thinking in line with His Word. Ask yourself: am I being a good steward of what God has given me, or told me to do?
I've heard it said that how you do anything is how you do everything — the way you approach one task is likely a reflection of how you handle everything else. As the saying (often attributed to John Wooden) goes: "When opportunity comes, it's too late to prepare." If someone you admired showed up at your door unexpectedly, would you be ready to receive them? Once they're at the door, it's too late to throw everything in the closet. John Maxwell has said he could observe someone for a day and tell you where they're headed. How you deal with everyday things gives real insight into how you'll deal with the greater things.
Do not put off what you can do today. Let your life be driven by purpose and values, not by what makes you comfortable.
Ecclesiastes 11:4 (AMPC) — "He who observes the wind [and waits for all conditions to be favorable] will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap."
This scripture speaks to those waiting for the "perfect" time to sow. It's telling us: do not procrastinate. While you're sitting and waiting on someone else to do better, or on something else to stop, you're wasting time on excuses. The time is now to get your house in order — inside and out. Let God give you wisdom in every aspect of your life.
Tips to put an end to procrastination:
Know what God's purpose and plan are for you — not everyone else's — and make it a priority.
Schedule your priorities on your calendar and don't wiggle out of them. Plan tomorrow the day before.
Build better habits so you stop wasting time on unnecessary things. For example: only check email when you have time to respond, and deal with mail as it comes rather than letting it pile up.
Set up a system of accountability, if you need one.
Learn how to pivot, but don't stop.
Surround yourself with people who bring solutions, and step away from people who only feed your problems.
"Someday is not a day of the week." — Janet Dailey
"How soon 'not now' becomes 'never.'" — attributed to Martin Luther
