Procrastination may be a habit common to humans, but I don’t see it in
the rest of nature.
Honeysuckle doesn’t wait for everything around it to be perfect before
it blooms. It blooms when it’s time to bloom.
Birds move with purpose, even when it’s just around a branch to get to a
better position.
The moon rises when it must.
I want to be more like the rest of nature. I need to study its ways and
practice blooming, moving, rising when it’s time, even when I don’t feel ready,
even when everything around me doesn’t seem perfect.
I have several projects that I’ve been thinking about for a long time, but
I’ve taken little action on them.
Anxiety can be an immobilizer, but there are ways to handle anxiety and
override its ways. It’s time to get serious about it.
Animals and plants don’t procrastinate. Why must I?
How do you fight procrastination?
I've never thought about nature in that way, why must we procrastinate so much. thanks for the new view
ReplyDeleteThanks, Emma G. I think nature has a lot to teach us.
DeleteI think I've learned to deal with being a P by assessing when something is really important, when I decide this my P steps aside, I puff up and do it. I also make lists which help me a lot...and I focus on the reason something should be done and not why I don't want to do, this helps me too.
ReplyDeleteI think you deal great with procrastination, Lynn! I love that you "puff up and do it." :-) That's a good idea, to focus on the reason for doing something. Thank you for sharing.
DeleteWhen battling the desire to procrastinate, I tell myself how great it will feel to get something done and over with while everyone else is still worried about doing it. I did this with homework in college and would do it the minute it was assigned and then I would have a whole week with the relief that I was already done while everyone else was stressing! Ever since then I have tried to get things done ahead of time. Doesn't always work but for the most part I stick with it :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your strategy, Keith. It sounds like a good one! I used to do things when they were assigned, but somewhere along the way, I started procrastinating.
Deletelove that thick honeysuckle!
ReplyDeleteour brains keep us overthinking so much of our lives that we take little action.
Thanks, Theresa. Those photos of the honeysuckle were taken at a nearby lake in May. Honeysuckle just smells like summer to me!
DeleteYes, our overthinking gets in the way of action sooooo often.
Ah ha, I'm for procrastination. It's unfair to compare to plants and animals. Animals have a different brain. Plants ant the moon? Well , some argue plants have some sort of brain. So because we are lucky enough to have a brain we can procrastinate. I do appreciate your point and I like your comparison . Yes procrastination hurts. We worry when we procrastinate.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Red. Yes, animals and plants are certainly different from humans, but I think we can learn a lot from nature. Procrastination causes me to worry a LOT. So I'm glad when I can push through it.
DeleteSo true, Tina! Animals don't procrastinate, nor do they rush about, either...yet everything still gets done! Great lessons to be learned here from them. Love your photos.
ReplyDeleteHi Tina, I meant to say, as well, that I think that people who procrastinate are often the most stressed, because they wait until the last possible moment to do things and end up being rushed all the time. I don't like to procrastinate and like to take my time to do things, as I feel less stressed and more able to do what I need to do in a calm manner.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Linda. I agree--procrastination leads to great stress, and it's really not worth it in the end. I don't like to feel rushed, either, but sometimes I end up putting myself in that state of mind.
DeleteNature acts in its own time, and I love to watch that. :-)
Great photos and thoughts! So true...
ReplyDeleteMy secret for dealing with fear (which is what procrastination is, after all) is to break a task down into little steps, and schedule those steps a few at a time. I don't try to do too much at one time, which overloads me mentally as well as physically. I once bought myself a stuff turtle to remind me to be the tortoise, not the hare, and it helps.
Thanks, Nadine. You're right--procrastination is fear, and I'm sitting here thinking, what am I afraid of? I think some of it is fear of not being able to do something, which is silly when it's something that I've done a thousand times. Fear of being bored is part of it, too. I like your way of breaking things into smaller steps.
DeleteI bet you'll feel better once you get moving on your projects. I always like getting things started. Even a little bit helps.
ReplyDeleteI adore the smell of honeysuckle!
Thanks, Lisa. I will feel better. I just have to do a little bit at least. :-)
DeleteI love the smell of honeysuckle, too! It evokes good memories.
honeysuckle is one of my favorites....my regular bike path is loaded with honeysuckle!!
ReplyDeletei am a list maker and a project "do-er"!!
Thanks, Debbie. I bet your bike path smells good!
DeleteMaybe I need to put things in writing and make some lists of my own. I'd like to be a "do-er" like you!
Procrastination is one of my downfalls. I really enjoyed your pics and your thoughts about nature. Just do it, even if nothing is 'perfect'. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kim. Yes, sometimes we have to just do it. Sounds cliche, but it's true--sometimes you have to decide to just take action, even if you don't feel ready.
DeleteI love your correlation to nature in this post about procrastination...it's so true, nature does not hesitate, neither should we! I am deadline oriented. If I set up a deadline for myself or write it on my calendar, I tend to do it. If nothing is written down or I don't have it on the schedule, I procrastinate or basically find other things to do to fill the space. I am now teaching intuitive writing classes and we had a retreat this weekend. There were many breakthroughs.The idea was to set the inner critic aside and just let whatever comes come. The practice of moving the hand across the page or fingers across a keyboard is what intuitive writing is all about. From there, people ended up creating beautiful poems and pieces of writing. I think there is freedom in letting ourselves be imperfect and vulnerable and allowing nature to move through us, as we are part of it too.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Katherine. You've reminded me of what we used to call "freewriting" when I was teaching. The students would just write, without editing, for a certain period of time, and then would look back at the ideas that had flowed. It was a good way to get started on a project like an essay. I sometimes do that when I'm working on a story for the newspaper. It does get me moving and thinking and then it's easier to just keep on moving and thinking. :-)
DeleteI needed to read a post like this today - as I am such a procrastinator.
ReplyDeleteI've noticed though, that the more I have things organized - written out, etc., that I'm able to get things done!
I hope you are doing well!
Thanks, Amanda, and I hope you're doing well also. I do better when I'm organized, too, and right now I'm not very organized. When I note things on my calendar and make helpful lists, I tend to get more done.
DeleteAnxiety is indeed an immobilizer.
ReplyDeleteTina- how did you capture the moon like you did? I have tried to take a picture like that so many times and it never ever turns into anything more than a shiny dot!
Thank you, Elizabeth. Isn't it strange that anxiety hypes us up but slows us down at the same time?
DeleteActually, the picture didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. There's more glow in the photograph than there was in real life. I have a Canon, and I had it on automatic setting. I didn't use a tripod, which would have helped. I just stood there and focused and clicked.
I guess I'm a procrastinator - I find that I procrastinate less, if I just don't make any commitments - just kidding... I often procrastinate until it stresses me out, then I get motivated. Making lists also help.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Karen. Those commitments can lead to procrastination! :-) It's too bad we sometimes have to get stressed out before we go ahead and do whatever it is we're supposed to do.
DeleteGreat pictures, Tina! I agree; Nature knows what she's doing. We can all learn some lessons from her!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Janet. The older I get, the more I learn that.
DeleteI need to get moving on my projects, too! I love the picture of the moon over the trees. What a peaceful vision.
ReplyDeleteThank you, C. I have to learn to get moving on the projects even when I don't feel motivated. :-) I love looking at the moon, too.
DeleteI took an hour and a half bike ride this morning and relished in smelling the honeysuckle as I rode on the path along the river. When I saw your photo, it made me so happy. Do you mind if I use it on my happy list? I do know what you mean about procrastination. Sometimes I get it bad and wish I could move on and get things done!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Patty. Your bike ride sounds wonderful! I love being down on the river here. And honeysuckle is a comforting scent to me. Yes, it's great if you want to use it on your happy list!
DeleteAs humans, we just think too darn much instead of just doing what must be done. Such a hindrance at times. Looking to nature for a better way is smart indeed. xo
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nancy. I can overthink anything, any subject. :-)
DeleteThe Moon is my inspiration.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sharon. You have a lovely muse.
DeleteTo procrastinate is human. I can't get out of my own way a lot. Eventually, I get things done but you know how it is... Good luck getting on with things. I'm sure you will.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Barbara. Yep, I get in my own way, too. Thanks for the encouragement.
DeleteI posted about something similar tonight. I make lists. It may be a little over-organized, but seeing the things I want/need to do in writing really helps me focus. Thanks for stopping by Buttercup's. Hope you will visit often.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Carol. I read your post, and yes, I get sidetracked too! I think getting back to making lists would help me too.
DeleteBrilliant observation about nature :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kathy. Nature teaches me a lot when I remember to look. :-)
DeleteI love this post Tina - you write so beautifully x
ReplyDelete