There is SO MUCH to do.
WHY DOES MY FEAR BRAIN WANT ME TO SIT AND DO NOTHING???
I used to wonder why — in horror movies — someone would just sit and wait. Like, there are so many other things you could do.
You could go get a knife.
Every house has a knife.
You could lock the doors, throw down a dresser in front of a door, hang out by a window you could jump out of and run should said monster get past your dresser-blocked-door.
Or, You could gather your adrenaline and go on the offensive. 😉
And yet…
in so many Hollywood scripts,
the character becomes paralyzed with fear,
with overwhelm,
with WHATEVER.
And I think,
NOT ME.
Yet, here I am.
I was sick as a dog yesterday.
And I’ve got some pressing to do’s.
A LOT to write, publish, print.
I’ve got a list in front of me.
For instance, I need to update my SOPs for the office, including our daily or weekly “guides” for:
Social Media,
Outreach,
Speaking outreach,
Pre-publishing book promotion,
Media outreach and followup,
and more actually.
And after these are updated, I’ve got to distribute them to the right people, HIRE an additional person. I’ve got to identify targets, I’ve got to actually get MY part done.
Oh, and I’ve got a kid applying for college,
another navigating schedule changes for next semester,
some personal stuff that needs tending to,
blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
And just before I decided to pick up this computer and “talk” to you, I was staring at the page. My list.
All the things that — frankly —
DO excite me.
I am not a very organized person,
but I LOVE creating lists and standard ops.
It reminds me of playing secretary back in the day,
it makes me feel accomplished.
Still… I sat,
staring. And I ALMOST
(almost)
got lost scrolling “Just for a minute,”
here on Facebook.
Like the girl I shake my head at
in the horror flick.
So many options,
not sure where to start,
so she
did
nothing.
=)
And that is procrastination, right?
Overwhelm.
Fear.
Many options.
All of them right.
None of them wrong.
Nothing URGENT.
but everything IMPORTANT.
Which way to go…
Procrastination.
the act of delaying or postponing.
If I could count the YEARS and the DOLLARS this cost me…
well, I wouldn’t.
I don’t love regret. =)
So I won’t count.
It would be infuriating.
But, I was so used to the tyranny of the urgent, the pressing deadlines, the clients waiting on something ..
that when the URGENT wasn’t ruling me,
I refused to choose.
I delayed.
Postponed.
Sat without aim.
Yes, ME.
Until I made a commitment.
To my vision.
to my purpose.
To my people.
To my potential.
I made a simple choice to commit.
To ask ONE question.
And so, I beat procrastination.
One non-urgent,
could-be-aimless
or
could-be-impactful
choice at a time.
I beat it,
with one question.
WHAT WILL MY FUTURE SELF
THANK ME FOR DOING
TODAY?
This could be simply thinking of what I’ll be GLAD I did when I close my computer today. Or, it could be thinking of what the me ONE YEAR ago would be glad i did this week.
But, I borrow the satisfaction,
the pride,
the sense of accomplishment
from tomorrow
to GUIDE me
to INSPIRE me
today.
What will YOU do today…
that your future self will be SO grateful for?
P.S. Message me.
Tell me what you do. Tell me about your business. Tell me your biggest business challenge. Tell me your wildest goals.
