Tue 13 Jul 2010
Procrastination happens. Let’s acknowledge that and stop running away from it. The more effective habit to attempt control of is how we procrastinate. Currently my default procrastination method is to go on the computer. I check my five websites (Facebook, Gmail, Google Reader, Huffington Post, and the Youth Dance Weekend registration list) and then run through them again. I go play a half-hour game of Cities & Knights of Catan online. I listen to music and play mahjong or yahtzee or sudoku. These activities are next to useless, and don’t move me closer to any of my goals.
So why wait for New Year’s Day to make resolutions? I want to change my default procrastination method to the making of music, and I want to make that change by December 31st, 2010.
What’s your default procrastination method? Does it further your goals? What would you like it to be instead?
July 13th, 2010 at 12:16 pm
Well, Alex, again, you pose thought-provoking questions. First off, I would like to say that I appreciate your acknowledgment that “procrastination happens”. An acceptance of what is certainly can help boost us out of anywhere and into somewhere better.
I wasn’t prepared to accept that “procrastination happens” toDAY, necessarily, but, what the heck? Why wait for a better time?
I guess, as the new owner of a brandy-new-to-me laptop, I have been spending WAY too much time playing with it. So, I would say that has been my default of late. This has been only somewhat productive. But, a little productive, yes. Tipping windmills takes time, don’t ya know.
Since the idea of procrastination is to postpone productivity, then the computer, for me, has somewhat failed, since it has been a bit productive.
So, how to postpone productivity in a different way? What can I do that is, to me, a total waste of time? Good question.
Well, I still don’t know. I’ll think about it later.
July 13th, 2010 at 11:02 pm
Perhaps you and I have different ideas of what procrastination is, but I consider it to be postponing productivity, work, pursuit of one’s goals. If you choose a “default procrastination method” that is in fact, productive, and brings you closer to achieving your goals, then as far as I’m concerned it’s no longer procrastination. It’s another thing to do which, at times, I will procrastinate from through other methods — because procrastination happens, and that wasn’t fitting the bill.
I agree with you that procrastination happens. You say, we can’t eliminate it, so let’s channel it into something else. I say, we can’t eliminate it, but we can minimize it. Perhaps there’s something to both methods. You aren’t likely to eliminate other procrastination by replacing all your down time with music making, but maybe you can do some of each, and then move on to your other work.