Putting Things Off

Putting things off. 

Why is it we never have any problem watching the next episode of Big Brother, or eating at our favorite restaurant, or scrolling through our Face Book page? But when it comes to cleaning up the kitchen after dinner or sitting down to pay bills or going through the junk mail we always seem to find ourselves putting these things off?

Plain and simple we easily do the things we enjoy, and we put off the things we don’t like to do. I think this is pretty much just human nature and we all are guilty of it in one way or another. 

This is where I think self-discipline comes into play. As much as I wish I was overjoyed at making my bed each morning I must admit that I find it extremely boring, and left to my own devices it would remain unmade. 

However, it does get made for the following reasons. One because I like the way my bedroom looks when the bed is made. Neat and tidy makes me feel better, and secondly I like how it feels at night when I get into a bed that has been made. 

I don’t really love cleaning up the kitchen each night after dinner. I find that boring too, but I do it because just like Gretchen Rubin says, “Outer order contributes to inner calm.”

So each night I get myself off the couch and head to the kitchen to do the dishes. It’s not fun no matter how much I try to convince myself, but through discipline I accomplish the task. If somewhere along the line we got the message that we only had to do the things we enjoy, then we got the wrong message. 

So instead of feeling guilty, and beating yourself up for being a procrastinator, realize that most of us are card carrying members of this club. It’s human nature to shy away from things we don’t find fun, but by mustering up the self-discipline we need to get the job done, we can reap the reward. 

Life isn’t always fun or easy, and self-discipline is hard, but  just like I used to tell my students, “Just because it’s hard doesn’t mean we don’t do it.”

So whatever you’ve been putting off just get up and go do it. If need be play your favorite music or listen to Dr. Laura. Whatever it takes to make it more tolerable just go for it.

You’ll feel better about yourself for getting it done when your through. How does procrastination play a role in your life?