The Downside of Procrastination: Warrior Mind Podcast #456

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In this episode of the Warrior Mind Podcast I’m going to discuss the downside of procrastination, even if you think there is benefit, there’s not.

The Downside of Procrastination

Procrastination is when you put something that you should do now off to do it at a later time or date. It’s a common characteristic with every person to delay doing something. However, there is times that when we procrastinate; we don’t get to do that thing at all. Among the most common procrastinating statements include;

• I’ll start on my new fitness program when the weather improves,
• I’ll start on my diet plan after having this birthday cake,
• I’d love to visit my aunt, but I have a jam-packed weekend,
• I’ll teach my kids about the dangers of drug abuse soon but not today,
• We’ll do the extended holiday soon but not this year,
• I’d love to get back to my college classes soon but not this semester,
• My spouse and I will go for a date again but not until the kids leave home,
• I want to start saving but not until I get a pay rise,
• I want to act friendly to them, but I’ll do it when they begin being fair as well,
• I’ll make a will and encourage my Father to do so soon,
• We plan to launch a marketing a plan when our sales increase,
• I love to write that book, but I’ll do it next year when I have time,
• I wish to call my friends, but I’ll do it next week when we’re out of school.

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These are a few of the common phrases you’ll come across from people daily. But what does this procrastination cost you? For many of the people, the price they pay back is far more than expected. It can further result if you not achieving your goals. Let’s consider the consequences you might suffer from some of the above procrastinating examples;

• You failed to get to your new diet program, and therefore you gained more weight,
• After the weather improved, you looked out for a new excuse not to exercise and thus risking your health,
• Your aunt passed away before you visited her,
• You’re not able to materialize the extended holiday,
• You didn’t talk to your kids about drug abuse, and now your son is an addict,
• For not taking your college classes, you’re still working on a job that you hate,
• You got divorced since you didn’t have time to spend with your spouse,
• You didn’t get a pay increase, and therefore you retired broke for not saving,
• You still hold on grudges waiting for others to be nice,
• Also, your parents didn’t make a will, and much of their properties got wasted on lawyers.
• You didn’t launch the marketing plan, and as a result, your business went bankrupt,
• Someone took your ideas and wrote a successful book since you didn’t take the initiative to write the book yourself.
• You delayed communication, and now you’ve very few friends left.

These are as a result of procrastination. What you need is stop procrastinating and do it now reasons being you don’t know about tomorrow. Take an example you get diagnosed with cancer, and the doctors say you have a year left to die. You should take the initiative to implement your goals so that at the end of the one year, you’ll be successful.

Do you think you could have done things differently?

Are there some things that you put off that if given a chance today you’d do them differently? Among the reasons why a large group of people holds to procrastinating is the all-or-nothing mindset. That is, “if you can’t do everything on the list, you won’t do anything.” That’s being silly in that; people focus on what they cannot do rather than what they can do. What this does is reduce their levels of success to increase their frequencies of procrastination.

If you want to do away with procrastination, the following steps will be of great help,

• Make a list of all the things you did put off getting them done on a later date. Include things you loved to do, and the relationships you procrastinated. Note to do it immediately.
• Review the items to see if you’d admire to do them. Pick the ones that fit in your current goals and are meaningful to you.
• Categorize the list into three groups;
• Things you want to achieve,
• Things that you wish you have,
• Relationships you want to enrich,

 Gain personal knowledge and create self-awareness as a way of reducing cases of procrastination.

• Discover the reasons why you did procrastinate on doing something on the past and look out on what it did cost your life then project on your future.
• Prioritize your goals so that you don’t feel overwhelmed.
• Pick your first item and attend to it without making further procrastination
• Enjoy the process of achieving new goals. Don’t focus only on achieving the goals.
• Stop Feeling guilty for the things you procrastinated on in the past as it’ll cost you more delays
• Seek help from other people.
• Celebrate your successes if you want to keep the spirit

Much of the things you pick will not call for much cash. Some of these items might also need fiscal resources creating a conflict of interest. Take an example; you need to go somewhere necessary, but the only cash you have is your retirement savings. When you face such a thing, consider following these rules

Rule1: do not delay on something you cannot achieve at a later date

Rule 2: If you can replace your savings in the future, base your decision, not on your longevity but mortality.

The next thing is to start taking actions as a priority. However, make your obligations based on your abilities. Make sure to embrace what life has to offer today. If lack of resources is the cause of your procrastination, look at what results to the limited resources.

Final Verdict

When you look back on yesterday, you should get a feeling of satisfaction, contented, happy and fulfilled. Check out on what you did with your time? Did you change your way of doing things? My advice is that you engage your life fully. Ensure not to make further mistakes by procrastinating, to limit the damage it costs your life. Many of us fail in life because we wait for the right time so that we can start on doing something. Stop waiting as time will never be right, and if you wait on time, it’s not waiting for you.

For a more in-depth discussion about this topic request your Introductory Consultation.

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