Thoughts on procrastination and other things

[mousme]

Two posts in a week! ;)

I'm logging on from work (I'm allowed to do that at my new job, within reason, which is a refreshing change), so I shall keep this relatively brief.

Part of my newfound productivity is a new resolution on my part to stop procrastinating. This is going to be a long-term process, as bad habits are hard to break and new habits are even harder to form. I've been listening to the iProcrastinate podcast by Professor Tim Pychyl (I hope I spelled that right), whose website can be found at http://www.procrastination.ca. I happen to find the website itself kind of klunky in its design, but thus far I love the podcast itself. It's just the right mix of theory (academic and otherwise) and practical applications thereof for me, and has already offered some very good insights into the phenomenon of procrastination.

The one thing that has stuck with me since I started listening a few days ago is the idea that the feelings of guilt that stem from procrastination are actually the result of living in a way that's inauthentic to one's true self. This hit really close to home, and hard enough that it made me sit up a bit in the car (where I was listening to the podcast) and think that, yeah, that sounds exactly right. Putting things off, especially important things (and isn't it always the important stuff on which one ends up procrastinating?) always ends up with me either in a mad rush, or crippled by anxiety (which in turn results in more procrastination), and that's not who I want to be. I also have a huge problem with perfectionism and all-or-nothing thinking (they go hand in glove) which in turn leads me to procrastinate ("If I can't do it perfectly/all at once, then I won't do it at all!")

I'm not waiting until the New Year to work on my procrastination. I figure I'll take Pychyl's advice and "just get started." I do have some projects that I will wait until January to start, if only because I know I won't have the time and attention for them right now. January is just around the corner, in any event, so it's not like I'm putting it off indefinitely.

One of the major components of ending procrastination, according to Pychyl, is to make what he calls an "implementation intention." It's essentially a concrete plan for oneself, framed either as an approach or avoidance goal (the former being preferable to the latter), the more specific the better. So if, say, I want to become more reliable about flossing my teeth, the process might look like this.

1- I want to floss my teeth regularly in order to have a sparkling white smile and because my mouth feels nice when I do it (Approach goal. An avoidance goal would be "I don't want to get gingivitis or have tooth decay." Avoidance goals are, apparently, psychologically harder to stick with).

2- Every night after I take my toothbrush out of the glass but before I brush my teeth, I will put down the toothbrush and floss my teeth first. (This gives me a concrete set of steps that will allow this to eventually become an unthinking habit, something to work into my nightly routine, and by not making it the last thing I do, it makes it easier for me to follow through on implementing my intention.)


So because there are lots of things about myself that I would like to change (most of them small, some of them big, all of them important in some way), I'm going to be spending the next couple of weeks before the New Year coming up with not only a comprehensive list, but also coming up with a series of implementation intentions and strategies for the coming months. Changes need to be small and gradual, but also consistent.

The short list of stuff I have right now is as follows, in no particular order of importance:

1- Health habits (walking, eventually running, getting a grip on my mental health, etc.)
2- Writing (writing regularly, honouring writing commitments--fanfic and original--, finishing my work, submitting work for publication)
3- Knitting (working on more projects and rediscovering my enjoyment therof)
4- Family (spending less/no time on the computer when we're all home together)
5- Mindfulness (this may well fall under health habits, but I also want to focus on not letting negative thinking influence me as much)
6- Cooking (cooking more, mastering the art better, cooking more from scratch)
7- Housekeeping (keeping the house tidier than I currently am)
8- Work (actively pursuing career options, being more assertive about my job)
9- Friends (making a point of keeping in touch, which I am notoriously bad at)
10- Blogging (posting once a day, getting my thoughts organised, etc.)


Part of my resolution to post every day in the New Year will be my commitment to all these changes. I want to be accountable for the changes I'm trying to make, and the only way to do that is to put myself out there and therefore honour my commitment. In fact, one of the first implementation intentions I'm going to make is one regarding blogging.

It's difficult for me to form habits because of my irregular schedule. I can't say "Every day at X time I shall do Y thing," because on some days I work from 5:30am to 5:30pm, on other days I work from 5:30pm to 5:30am, on other days I don't work at all, and some days are spent recovering from a night shift. So a daily routine is next to impossible. That being said, I think I can still find a way to form good habits and to get into a kind of routine, just one that isn't as conventional as it might be. I just have to figure out what works and what doesn't.

Comments

[embroiderama]

This is really interesting! I'm an awful procrastinator too, so thank you for the link and the info.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

My pleasure! You and I seem to have similar, or at least overlapping problems/neuroses. I hope you find it helpful! I don't like the site (the layout isn't very user-friendly), but listening to the podcasts has been great.

[kiwano.livejournal.com]

1- Health habits (walking, eventually running, getting a grip on my mental health, etc.)

Sounds like you've already made quite a start on your mental health. Good work, keep it up, and all that.

6- Cooking (cooking more, mastering the art better, cooking more from scratch)

Because it is winter, I'd like to remind you that making pea soup from scratch pretty much just involves frying some onions (and garlic), tossing in a bit of pork and a lot of split peas and even more water, bringing it to a boil and simmering it for hours (occasionally topping up the water as needed), and maybe adding some spices. I usually do a ~2gal pot at a time, and get around 8-10 meals out of it for about $10 in ingredients (and I even do fancy things like toss a bit of maple syrup in with the onions while they fry, use bacon as some of my pork, and substitute apple cider for some of my water).

[mousme.livejournal.com]

Oh, pea soup is one of the dishes I make best. I'd have to check with the family first to see if they'll eat it, to gauge how much I should make. Bean's reaction to everything I cook is "Me not like it," so I have to cook in smaller quantities than I'm used to, simply because he won't eat what I cook and because there's more limited room in the fridge/freezer now that we're three people.

But yes, pea soup is delicious. :)

[primrose-1.livejournal.com]

Worthy goals, but it's a long list. I'm a big fan of baby steps. Don't feel like you have to swallow that whole list in one huge gulp! Go you!