When the Hare becomes the Tortoise: Why Procrastination is Okay Sometimes

So I never procrastinate…Okay, that's not quite true—anytime I use "never" or "always", I know its not quite true. I sometimes procrastinate—there, that's a little more accurate, probably more so when I was younger.  In junior high, I used put off doing my French homework so I could work on my English essays. In high school, I worked on my History paper rather than working on my chemistry assignment. And now, I choose to edit my manuscript instead of completing my yoga teacher training homework.

But lately I've been wondering if this pattern can really be considered procrastination. I mean, I always got my homework done on time, usually early, in fact. I just did it in the order that I wanted to, rather than getting all the boring, hard work done first. And then recently, just the past few years, I decided that there was something wrong with this attitude, that I should more be "responsible" and do things the "right" way, whatever that was. So I started doing the hard tasks first, adopting a "first work, then play" attitude. And more recently, just two month ago, I realized I had made a mistake.

It all started with summer, I swear. The sun came out and all I wanted to do was play, play on my computer, play with my dog, play outside, play inside, play at work—I wanted to play everywhere I went. And while it's not hard for me to relate with most tasks as play, I, like all of us, still have hum-drum tasks that I have attend to, like my yoga teacher training homework.

You see, this was the first time I've ever had "homework" in the summer, and I, like a rebellious teenager, did not want to do it. In the past, I would have gotten it done the day after it was assigned, but now, I was in quite a conundrum: I wanted to do other things instead. And then I had to ask myself, was it a bad thing to do my homework two weeks before it was due rather than a month before it was due?

And the answer I came up with was no, it wasn't a bad thing. In fact, it was good thing. It means that I'm learning how to relax, how to have a better work/play balance, acknowledging that for everything there is a season and the season of summer is play. It's not about work then play or play then work, its about working when you need to work and playing when you need to play. As a kid, I knew that, lived by that, but now, as an adult, I got caught up in trying to be the hare when, in fact, right now, I'd rather be the turtle.

So if you're like me–zoom, zoom, zoom, always on the go, always on the ball, always getting things done – try a little experiment. Let the ball slide a little, don't drop it completely, but see what happens if you don't catch it right away. The sun did not come crashing into the earth because I didn't do my homework immediately, and chances are it won't if you relax a little, too. Even though, technically its considered procrastination, in moderation, its good for you, like a glass of red wine or a piece of dark chocolate.

So enjoy your summer. I know I certainly will. :-)

©ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, Angela Dawn MacKay
www.knottedwordscelticart.com, Twitter: @AngelaDMac, www.angelamackay.com

Procrastinating the Positive: Explorations on Why We Don't Do the Things We Love to Do

So, I was looking at the date of my last blog post and I realized it has been five whole months since I have written. Five months! How did that happen?

I love blogging, I really do. And yet, somehow, I didn't do it. And then I have to ask myself, "Why? Why didn't I do something that I love for so long?"

I mean, I could make excuses, some really good ones, too. I was editing a manuscript. I was taking art classes. I updated my website. These are all valid reasons for not blogging, and yet still, they don't seem adequate.

While I don't want to be hard on myself for not writing, I do want to explore why I didn't write so that I don't do it again. Why wouldn't I take the time to do something I love to do?

As near as I can remember the first thing that happened was that I just didn't post for a week or two. "Oh, I'll do that later," I said to myself, "I need to focus on my manuscript right now." Well, "later" turned into several months, which was not my intention at all.

After not posting for so long, I then completely forgot about my blog. How could you have forgotten about your blog, you might ask? The answer is, I don't know, but I guess I must have. I just forgot I had one, forgot it was something I used to like to do.

The next question I have to ask myself is, "How did I come to remember my blog?" Well, I updated my website, which has a link to my blog and then it came to my awareness that a) I had a blog, and b) I hadn't posted in five months. And then I remembered how much I loved blogging, how excited I was when I started the blog, and that was when I renewed my commitment to writing posts.

And so now, after careful exploration, I have discovered a few things that might help me blog more regularly, and I will share them with you, my dear readers:

• Set a Specific Intention: Note that I used the word "intention", not "goal". And so my intention is to write a blog post weekly, which does not mean I will actually write weekly, just that I intent to. And to even be more specific, I hereby declare Monday as Blog Day, a great way to start the week.
• Write That Intention Down and Tell Others About it: In writing it down and having others bear witness to it, you are more likely to follow through. That was my mistake before – I had always planned to write weekly, but I didn't tell any one about my intention, and so I was not accountable to anyone, and so had no reason to follow through. In announcing my commitment to my blog to my readers, I already feel more committed because I like to keep my promises. And so if I said I would blog weekly, by Golly, I will.
• Be Gentle When the Intention Doesn't Lead to Action: Being hard on yourself isn't actually that motivating – it is gentleness that eases us back into action. And so if I don't blog one Monday, I don't have to beat myself up – I can commit to blogging on another day that week, or if that's not possible, give myself permission to skip a week and blog on the following Monday.
• Remember Why You Want to Do It: When we can connect with our motivation of why we want to engage in a certain activity, it is much easier to remember that we want to do it, not that we have to. It was my fond memories of the experience of blogging that brought me back to post. We have to remember why we want to do the things we love to do. For me, I love writing things and letting them go, knowing that anyone in the world could read them. I love feeling connected with clients outside of sessions, offering my writings as a way to support others when they are not in my office. And I just love plain old' writing, that's really the heart of it. 

And so with that said, I'll see you next Monday. Or not. :-)

© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, Angela Dawn MacKay 

www.knottedwordscelticart.com, Twitter: @AngelaDMac, www.angelamackay.com

The Procrastinating Prince

      Once upon a time, there was a Prince who did want to do anything, but play video games. He slept in late and had his servants bring food to his quarters while he sat on his bed and played Dragon Quest all day long.
      When asked if wanted to ride his horses, the Prince said, "Nay… I'll do it later, I'm busy right now." When asked if he wanted to train the knights, the Prince said, "Nay…I'll do it later, I'm busy right now."
       The King grew more and more frustrated with the Prince.
      "How can I get him to do something? … Anything?" the King asked his court.
      "I have an idea, Sire, that might help motivate him," the Magician said. "But I will need the help of the Dragon that guards the castle gates."
      "Why, of course," the King said. "I'll give you anything you need…just get that boy out of his room and doing something!"
      "Thank you, Sire," the Magician said.
       That evening, the Magician snuck into the Prince's quarters. He took his DS and flat screen TV away and hid them in the Dragon's Lair,  a dark cave at the top of Black Mountain.
       The next morning, the Prince awoke and found that his things were missing.
     "Where are they?!" the Prince demanded. "I want to play Dragon Quest right now - I'm on the last level!"
     "Sire, it seems that the Dragon was interested in playing Dragon Quest, as well," the Magician said. "Last night, he flew into your chambers and stole your player and TV. This morning, he has not taken his post at the castle gates, but instead, he is high up in his lair, playing Dragon Quest. Every time he kills a bad guy, he gets so excited that smoke and fire fill the skies!"
     "Well, I must get it back, then," the Prince says. "Servants, ready my horses. Gather the knights. We are going on a Dragon Quest of our own!"
      The Prince mounts his horse and rides to where the knights are waiting. "We must ride to the top of Black Mountain and recover what was taken from me!"
      So the Prince leads the nights through the Phantom Forest and up towards Black Mountain. As the slope was too steep for all of the knights to climb, the Prince went up the mountain alone.
      When he reached the Dragon's lair, the Prince snuck into the cave. There he saw the Dragon, curled up on rock playing Dragon Quest. So involved in the game, he was, that he did not notice the Prince's arrival.
      The Prince spoke up. "Dragon, I challenge you to a duel! To the death! What say you, Dragon?"
      The Dragon looked up from the TV screen and met the Prince's eye.
     "I accept your challenge!" the Dragon said. He smiled and bowed his head. "So I shall set the game up for two players, then?"
      The Prince smiled. "Yes, that's a great idea!"
      So the Dragon and the Prince battled together, killing each other over and over. The Dragon snorted whenever he won, setting fire to the rocks near by. The Prince roasted marshmallows over the flames, eating one every time he defeated the Dragon.
      As night fell, the Prince prepared to return to the castle.
     "So I shall return the same time tomorrow and we will continue to battle?" the Prince asked, eyeing the Dragon.
     "Yes, Sire, that sounds like a great idea!" the Dragon said, smiling.
    And so the very next morning, the Prince rose very early. He rode the horses and trained the knights for battle. And then the Prince climbed up the mountain to the Dragon's lair and they battled until dusk. Day after day, the Prince rose early, rode the horses, trained the knights, and battled with the Dragon.
      Upon hearing this great news, the King called the Magician to the court.
      "I am afraid, Sire, that my trick has produced mixed results," the Magician said. "I did not expect that the Dragon would be lured in by the game as well."
     "Nonsense!" the King said." I am grateful for the success you have had. At least you have gotten him out of his room! At least, he's out socializing! Thank you, Magician, for all of your help.…Now, there is just one more thing… Can you find me another Guard Dragon? I'm afraid that the castle gate is not very secure without one…"

© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, Angela Dawn MacKay 

www.knottedwordscelticart.com, Twitter: @AngelaDMac, www.angelamackay.com