Procrastination is easy.
I was reading, typing — yes, but reading as well. There are so many things that require my attention. And I’m putting them off.
To write, which is another thing that requires my attention. How do I do it all? The answer is: you can’t.
When are you energized?
Every body is different, and everybody has energy levels that peak and trough during their day.
Allocating your peak performance time to things that require the best of your attention – that’s how to get things done.
For someone with a lot of interests, isn’t life interesting? There is always something that can occupy your time.
When I think of people I know, how dissatisfied they seem with life, it comes as a surprise. With so much to explore, there is so much to be grateful for.
Framing matters a lot. Even when bad things happen, if you can highlight the good that still exists, then the negative will be minimized.
It doesn’t have to be nonexistent. Bad things happen. Jobs are lost, loved ones pass, and times can be tough. But we’re still here.
Sometimes, sitting to write takes a lot of willpower. There is no shortage of things that can eat at your attention.
Is it the day to day? Or is it something broader? What should our attention be on?
“Take your life in your own hands and what happens? A terrible thing: no one to blame.” – Erica Jong
The internet, and everything on it, is amazing.
I mean, yes – some of it is complete rage bait. Trolling, and terrible people, saying terrible things, from the relative anonymity of their aliases.
But, and I am an optimist, the internet has some much to offer – each and every one of us.
My thought is, though – what if, rather than being always connected, you limited the flow?
If your baseline is a fire hydrant flow, it’s going to hurt. If your base line is off, just turning the tap a bit can give you a glass of water.
It’s confusing want and need, and we’re being conditioned to think everything out there is needed. When it’s not.
We allow ourselves the luxury of distraction. What we should be making room for is inspiration.
Why do great ideas come to us in the shower? It’s the only time anymore that nothing else is demanding our attention.
From sun up, when you first grab your phone. To night… If the only time you can be alone with your thoughts – no phone, no internet, no tv, no distractions – is in the shower, what else would you expect?
Giving yourself time to just sit and think. That’s how to create something meaningful.
How much of our daily energy gets consumed by bad habits? As I have wondered over and over, where does the time go?
What are we spending it on, and is it worth it?
We’re not out there, hunting the wildebeest. At least I don’t think you are. Tigers aren’t chasing us.
And yet, we’re more anxious than we’ve ever been.
Why is that?
I am the guiltiest of guilty when it comes to this. I have, and have been consistently for most of my life, overencumbered by things that I have accepted upon myself to do.
Quite often without the commensurate income that I should expect with those heapings of responsibilities.
Even now, as I wade through employment, a stack of creative projects (my own), the consultations on others’ or co-owned creative projects, the daily, systematic routines I attempt to adhere to (mostly in vain), and the dozen or so long-ranging goals I’ve set for myself, I think:
WTF.
Is something being fun enough reason to do it? Is it a hobby? Is it something you can enjoy filling your time with?
Does it matter if it has no commercial practicality? Especially if, like many, you spend most of the day chasing financial stability.
It’s good to have something you can enjoy and spend free time on.
Without paying attention, I’ve made it to two months of daily posting. It’s a small milestone, but meaningful.
There’s a purpose for daily posting. Several, in all likelihood. For me, at least.
The first is, and probably the most important: getting into the routine is the biggest part of the battle.
Second, and nearly as important — if I post daily, even if one here and there really sucks eggs, there are so many more coming out consistently that they get lost to history.
Can you go back and look? Certainly. Will you?
Unclear.
Third, and probably the practical reason — this trains me to observe. If I am actively observing, I have things to write about.
If I walk through the day passive, then… I get nothing on the page.
Is this story good enough to read? Is this manual helpful enough? Will this blog post not waste somebody’s time?
I think these are the questions that stall us.
But they are often the ones we should give much less time to.
And focus on the doing.
Michael's Musings 