Creation Thoughts

I have been struggling hard the past few days on trying to do the stuff I know I need to do. (cue whiney voice) But I don’t wanna! I feel rundown and tired, and my bed keeps calling to me. I haven’t even felt like watching TV, and you KNOW there’s something wrong when my favorite programs don’t interest me. I’ve felt achey and headachey and weak, maybe I caught a smidge of a bug or something.

But - on to the point of this post, sometimes we just HAVE TO get something done, even when we don’t feel like it. Today is that day for me. I have a truckload of work to catch up on, and I’m far behind on housecleaning and my landlord is coming up to look at a leaky toilet tonight, so I HAVE to get this place looking halfway decent. I also have to make a few phone calls, because yesterday I spaced and didn’t realize it was my brother & sis-in-law’s anniversary, AND my best friend and her husband’s anniversary too! They got married on the same day but different years. And I didn’t even call either of them to say Happy Anniversary. So I MUST do that today.

So, what do we do to motivate ourselves into action on days like this? Here’s what I’ve been doing since morning, and it’s working. Hope it works for you too, the next time you’re sitting there groaning about something you absolutely have to do, but don’t wanna!

- No excuses. Don’t let yourself contemplate putting it off longer. I’m great at that. I start thinking about the next few days and what I’ll have going on, and then thinking, “Well, if I stay up all night Saturday to do this, I can do this other stuff on Sunday morning, and then I won’t have to do it today.” NO! Don’t even go there. All it does is cause more stress later when you’re moving 100mph to catch up on what you didn’t do today. Don’t let your mind play tricks, just commit to doing what you know needs to be done.

- Dive in and start. Don’t procrastinate on getting started. Don’t say, “Oh, I’ll wait till 4:00pm, because Oprah will be on and I won’t mind cleaning while watching her show.” At 4:00, I guarantee you’ll have another excuse ready.

- Work in bursts. This one works like a charm for me! Instead of spending an hour cleaning, I’ll spend 15-20 minutes cleaning, then come back to my desk and write an article, then go back to cleaning, then go wash some dishes, then go back to cleaning, check emails, back to cleaning, etc. The job doesn’t seem so big if you do a little at a time.

- Hang a juicy carrot. You know how they put a carrot on a long pole in front of a horse to get him to move? He keeps going because he’s trying to get a tasty treat, and doesn’t notice that he’d rather be grazing somewhere. All he sees is that nice, juicy carrot, and he wants it bad, so he goes full steam ahead! We can give ourselves the same motivation by setting up rewards for when our work is done. It doesn’t have to be anything big or exciting. For example, I’ve promised myself that if I get all my work done by 6:00pm tonight, I can spend the rest of the evening curled up, reading a good book. Maybe reading wouldn’t do it for you, and you’d rather buy yourself a new purse or go out in the yard to play with the kids, or visit a local park. But choose something that you’ll really enjoy and look forward to. Keep it in mind as you do your work to keep yourself motivated.

And then - most importantly about the reward, keep your word! Don’t cheat yourself out of it because it seems too frivolous or expensive or selfish. You deserve it, so be kind to yourself.

There. I hope that will give you some good ideas to keep in mind for when you’re having a day of procrastination because you just don’t feel like doing anything else.

Wendy
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