time to shine: step 3
(Part 3 of 4)
3. simply do the very next thing
Procrastination takes a toll on both your energy levels and your spirit. Negative self-talk inevitable in putting things off for tomorrow subtly erodes your self-confidence and belief in your ability to take charge of life.
Consider a handful of things you’ve been putting off. Odds are the avoidance is driven by one of three things:
1. You don’t want to—Honestly, this is the easiest dynamic to resolve. If you don’t want to do something, don’t. There’s nothing you HAVE to do. Truly. Of course there’ll be consequences for action and inaction, but you’re in charge of what you take on or let go. If giving yourself permission to say no and delete it from the list feels liberating, do it! If you feel it still needs to be addressed but preferably not by you, outsource it. You don’t have to navigate this journey of life by yourself. Call on your friends and family or hire someone. Often there’ll be something someone you know doesn’t want to do either, and you can share your skillsets and trade energy in a win-win.
2. You don’t believe it’s worth being a priority—If something is “important enough” to write down as a to-do, goal or dream but never enough to get around to, it’s time to get real. Talk is cheap. Actions tell the truth. Dig in to determine whether this actually isn’t a priority (in which case, you have permission to move on) or if it IS a true priority but gets lost in other competing calls for your time and energy (in which case, it’s time for soul searching on who/what you want driving your life (see step 2)).
3. You’re too scared —The biggest beast for sure, when you finally grasp your heart and soul’s true priorities, but your fear-based ego paralyzes you with what-if’s and who-do-you-think-you-are’s. Ugh. There’s so much to say about this. I probably write about the soul-ego tug-of-war more than anything else, but here’s a quick tool to have at the ready: The ego is most scared of the BIG picture, goal, change, thing. If you just limit your focus to the next baby step, ego won’t roar as loud or squeeze as hard. You can always do one small next thing.
Refocus your mind on your power and capacity by promising that today you’ll do one tiny-itty-bitty thing you’ve been putting off: make that naturopath/chiropractor/doctor’s appointment you’ve been thinking about, send a text to that long lost friend that’s been on your mind, google how to travel to your dream destination, unsubscribe to junk mail that overwhelms you, cook that recipe you saved on Pinterest… whatever the THING, don’t think about it for one more minute, just do it and watch it build confidence and momentum for the next step.
