Have you ever had a task that lingered on your to-do list so long that it started to resemble a scary container of leftovers from the back of the fridge?
It isn’t always logical which tasks are going to end up moldy. Some of them really don’t take long to do, yet they keep getting passed over and procrastinated on. There’s always something else that is more urgent or appealing.
Read MoreFor years — literally years! — I wrote each blog post on the day it was to be published.
I wanted to “get ahead” and have more posts in the queue, but I just didn’t quite have the capacity.
The downside to this approach was that I was always in emergency mode. That gets stressful.
Read MoreThe other day, I passed by a bus shelter on Monroe Drive in midtown Atlanta where a woman was determinedly sweeping the sidewalk with a broom.
She seemed to be an unhoused person, judging by the large amount of stuff stacked on the bench within the shelter. This was her home, her turf, and she was defending it from the onslaught of grime and debris from the road.
Even though I’m in a more privileged position in life, I can relate to this woman’s desire to do the tidying that she could. I understand her instinct to maintain life’s little routines in the face of chaos.
Read MoreMy first experience with procrastination and the terrible feelings it brings was in fourth grade. I was supposed to do a report on Leonardo da Vinci.
I don’t remember whether it was that night or the next morning when I suddenly remembered that I had this project to do, and panicked.
My mom let me stay home to complete the project with the understanding that this would be the last and only time I’d be allowed to do that.
Read MoreOne thing I hear a lot from those who are struggling to work for themselves (or to transition to working for themselves) is a tendency to put non-client-related projects on the back burner.
In the absence of real, actual, scary consequences from a boss or client, we shirk deadlines and procrastinate on the things we aspire to do for our own benefit.
The way around this is to treat yourself — your future self — like your boss or your most important client. In truth, that's what you are.
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