Moving the goal-posts

Well it’s been about six weeks since my last entry on this blog and my life has not gone in quite the direction I expected. The things I thought would be important to me have faded a bit and other things have come to the fore, which means I’ve had to reassess my priorities and, yes, move my goal-posts.

I wrote last time that my challenges to myself between then and Christmas were to brush up my Greek and to learn to juggle with three balls. I was very serious about Greek at the time and I did actually get out my old files, have a look through them and take it all forward. Then I went to Sicily with my family and was distracted by Italian… and then by other things, such as deciding to move to South Shields, a beautiful town on the north-east coast.

The juggling has progressed, because it fits with how I’m feeling right now. The Greek became hard work because it isn’t resonating with me in the place where I currently am, so I’ve put it back on hold. And that’s OK.

If you’re being paid to do a particular job, obviously you have to do it, whether you feel like it or not on any given day. If you find you rarely or never feel like doing it, then it’s time to see about changing your job. But if it’s a question of a hobby or peripheral activity, I say go with the flow and do what you feel like in the moment.

To maximise both achievement and happiness – and to minimise procrastination – focus your energy on what you find interesting, inspiring and involving. Goal-posts are there to help you. Once they become a hindrance, feel free to move them.

Why do I procrastinate?

As pointed out on the page about Your Work (though it’s true in every area of life), procrastination can be a real curse.

Because I’m much happier now, I procrastinate far less than I did but I used often to spend whole days engaged in what therapists call ‘intrapsychic struggle’. What this involves is my deciding I ought to achieve A, B and C today, if not D, E and F as well. Hey, it’s Saturday and we’re less likely to be interrupted by work calls, so let’s add G to the list as well. I’ve been working all week and would really benefit from some time off (that’s actually what weekends are for but I used to view them primarily as opportunities to get more done). So I attack A reluctantly and soon allow myself to be distracted. When I catch myself having ‘wasted’ time playing on Facebook or ringing a friend, I get furious and turn the full force of my sarcastic rage on my miserable inner self, who just wanted to have some fun.

Time spent in intrapsychic struggle is the worst of both worlds. You are not working but you’re certainly not relaxing either. As discussed in my previous post, ringfence leisure time and not only will you get more done, you'll have a more fulfilling life.

Deviously having fun when I'm 'meant' to be working is only one form that my procrastination has taken over the years but, however it manifests itself, what is lurking behind it is insecurity.

It was largely thanks to the book I’ve recommended on the site, Neil Fiore’s The Now Habit, that I discovered what my procrastination was all about. It explores the reasons behind procrastination and helps to combat it by debunking some myths.

If you tend to put off until tomorrow what you wish you had done today, get yourself a copy of The Now Habit and find out why. This won’t transform you into an action-hero overnight, of course, but once you understand your motivations, it’s so much easier to change your behaviour.