A common thread among human beings (not everyone, but many of us) is that we have a hard time doing things on our To Do Lists.
Joe is not one of these people. He wakes up in the morning, assesses what needs to be done, and then he just does it. He doesn’t think twice about stopping on his way home from work to wash his car, go to the bank, take care of business.
I’m not like this.
I look at all those things on my To Do List (cleaning, sorting, washing the car, going to the bank, returning the 900 Zevia cans in my pantry…) and my heart sinks. I don’t want to do it.
My mom says, “Do it not wanting to!” (with a smile)
Joe doesn’t say anything at all—he doesn’t think about it. The world is black and white—be happy and get things done.
I’m sitting here wishing I didn’t have a billion papers to grade, a blog post to write, and a 2-hour lecture to plan for 1pm. Oh, and I have to call two students, fix a midterm issue, find the department chair to sign off on some paper work. I need to update two assignments, write a weekly wrap-up post for one class, and plan another lecture/webinar for 8pm tonight.
I do those things because I’m getting paid to do them. But that totally doesn’t make the dishwasher unload itself. When I think about all that stuff, I feel like I’m living in glue. It even takes effort to think about it, and my mind sinks (And I want to curl up with my ipad and d*** around on the Internet for 8 hours straight).
It sounds like I’m in a bad mood! I’m not, really. I’m just contemplating what the difference is between the days when I tackle it all head on, and the days when I’m just not feelin’ it. I like being busy because I get into a productive mode (and I love money…so I can buy whatever I want at the grocery store and not have a budget!).
What do you do to make yourself do all the daily tasks in life that don’t “pay” you? I think we all have strategies that work for us, and I’d love to have some more ideas!
I can’t post this without letting you in on another new invention. Katelyn and I totally blew off a work party we were having yesterday afternoon to make fun things in the kitch and do the most awesome 90 minute spinning class ever with Nancy at the JCC (if I was a guy, I’d totally have a crush on her—is that weird?).
These were actually best (but not prettiest) with Sun Butter.
1/2 cup sprouted lentil flour (a la vitamix)
2 scoops vanilla Sun Warrior
20 drops vanilla stevia
1 cup water (not sure on this measurement–best to go by texture and add gradually)
We used coconut oil to make small soccas in the frying pan. Topped in the pic with acai jam (gotta make more of that!), coconut, and cacao nibs.
Please share your tips for cracking through the procrastination!
I like credible threats—but it’s hard to come up with those. Nothin’ scares me 🙂
Now, I really have to go plan my lecture. I hope you’re having a wonderful week—and it’s not that I’m procrastinating on answering emails or writing my next hormone post. I just need more time (or less sleep!?).
Lisa your pics are looking really beautiful the past few days! Are you doing something different?? 🙂
I HATE procrastinating. Letting stuff pile up seriously stresses me out! I am like Joe I think – I do things I have to do without thinking about it. It makes me feel much more calm!
– Beth @ http://www.DiningAndDishing.com
lol…thanks! You saved me a ton of time and $ by not making a therapy appt. because you know what? It's still morning and I WILL NOT let this day be a waste!
Now I will -1. back away from this computer
2.get in the gym for an hour
3.finish cleaning out my closet
“Just do it not wanting to!”
Thanks! I stopped procrastinating on using photo editing and got some new
photog lighting equipment (I was always trying to use natural light…which
is totally limited around here!).
I'm like you when it comes to work tasks…but not with other things. I
really need to work on it!
Ok, Go!
Ugh – no tips b/c I'm terrible at following my to-do list. I guess I tend to start with the things that seem less daunting and typically just do stuff here and there.
my trick is rewarding myself 🙂
if i get this done by this time i get _____. apparently i'm still 6 years old?!
I am the worst at putting things off…like now, I'm supposed to be working on taxes and obviously, I am not. I need to get better about time management. I think that's my biggest problem.
I am a procrastinator to the extreme. There are certain tasks and to-do's that get me excited and I'll get them done first and then the rest of the list usually goes to a first-priority list. Meaning…I do things at the very LAST minute. I have begun stressing less about this as I'm getting older because a lot of times I do my very best productive work when I feel the pressure. However, there is no pressure to do dishes (unless Ryan is protesting…which happens when I forget to rinse things) make the beds, go to the bank, etc because nobody but ME is upset when they don't get done. It's never steadfast either. For instance, some weeks getting to the gym is EASY BREEZY and other weeks it feels like the last thing on earth I want to do. I shift focus pretty regularly.
I am the same way. I wish I could do things like that without being unhappy that I'm doing them!
Those carrot balls look awesome!!!!!
I'm definitely a planner…..need to work on relaxing some! 😀
Carrot balls sound so good – and I can't stand the taste or texture of coconut so these would be perfect for me 🙂
I'm actually more like Joe — I make a list and I tackle it. I break things down as small as possible — in college I would make a list like this 1. go to computer 2. open word document 3. write intro 4. make an outline, etc. I would break it way down because checking stuff off my list was motivating. I also try to plan something “fun” to break up the work time — so if I clean for an hour, I get to read my book, watch tv, take a bath, call a friend, etc.
wow, that is QUITE the To Do list for today, lisa! good luck at getting through it!
i am with you: lately i have felt like i could use a good 4-6 MORE HOURS in the day. so much i WANT to do, and am eager to do, but need the time!
my go-to strategy: daily To Do lists. i love seeing what i need to do written out, planning when i am going to do each task, checking it off as i accomplish it. i'm a visual person so all this stuff helps me tackle jobs. I think i am like your Joe in my style!
glad you got the spin class! and with a friend, too. bet you felt GREAT after!
i admire you for all the balls you juggle~awesomeness!
I can't give you a single tip… as I am HUGELY procrastinating right now… my list is just as long as yours! I have a research paper due next Monday (10 pages) and I HAVENT EVEN STARTED … oh man… and the teacher marking is the hardest teacher I've had…
ug…
On a happy note, those carrot almond thingies look amazing!
Good luck 🙂
I definitely know what you mean. There are some days where I can do a million things and it feels great, and others where I'm just dreading even thinking about what I have to do. What always helps me is a good workout and a trip to Starbucks. 🙂
those carrot macaroons look like something I'd gobble down in a second! And seriously, I'd buy veggie flour off you! I totally have a to-do list running through my head at all times. I've tried to keep it quiet, because I know I need to relax more. It's gotten pretty bad though. More meditation is needed! When I have time for it, that is! 😉
I love the metaphor of “living in glue”. I absolutely empathize with you. Sometimes I'll even mentally yell at myself, because the grumbling and feet-dragging takes SO MUCH LONGER than actually DOING the thing that I'm doing. For instance, folding laundry. I'll whine and complain internally about how much I don't want to fold the laundry. I'll let it go for a few days. Finally, because I know that someone else will need to use the dryer eventually, I'll drag myself down to the basement. 10 minutes later, with a pile of freshly folded laundry, I'll think “Hey! That wasn't so bad!”. And I'll actually feel GOOD about having done it. So why didn't I just do it 3 days ago, before I started with all of the self-arguments? It doesn't make sense to me, and yet I do it again and again and again. I wish I knew the solution!
My husband is like Joe. He has magical “get things done” power! I find that if I make a to do list I am way more productive. The gratification I feel after I “check” something off makes me want to finish more!! Your carrot balls look amazing! I would buy them!! 🙂
I am the worst procrastinator. I generally end up doing everything that I need to in one day. Its like it builds up and at the end of the week i realize I really have to accomplish some things!
At first I thought the brown juice was coffee! And I def see the rabbit head!
I think that all you can do is think about how much better you will feel when it's done… even if it's just for a few hours until things start to pile up again… it's worth the work to have a break!
I'm not a big procrastinator but I do put things off sometimes or feel stuck. If it's something small (like putting away laundry) I just think, What kind of person do I want to be? The one who has clothes all over the place, or the one who keeps her room clean? And when it's something big (this will probably sound strange) but I think, What do I want to accomplish before I die? And that helps me get going on the big projects.
Love. us. We are freaky geniuses, you best know that those balls lasted approx. two seconds in my house! I am so excited for the frostingggg girl we are going to eat so many roons this weekend! I smell a hulu/salad night this weekend:)
I agree with Katelyn–you two are a pretty great pair in the kitchen!!
I totally get the whole living in glue thing–I'm going to try and take a page out of Joe's book!! 🙂
I love that you basically made your to-do list in your post… whether or not you meant to, that's a motivator! I still want to try the soccas… and you've taken the “brown food tastes better” to a whole new level with that juice! Now that I plan to grow and dehydrate herbs (with your help!) I feel like I need to get on the juicing bandwagon too. (Maybe juiced kale would be more appealing to me than in my smoothies!?) I've asked for a rice cooker for my birthday but maybe I should change that request to a juicer. Then again, I have no where to put it. Hrmmm…
I can't even tell you how much I related to this post. I have this odd sense of dread all the time. Like a mild “But! But! I don't waaaant to!”
I wish I was better about it, because it's so mental. It's just an obstacle I create. I'm working on it 🙂
I totally hear you friend! When I see my to-do list getting out of control, I just get more anxiety! What works for me is to keep my list in my trusty notebook, and just plan to tackle a little at a time – not all at once! One thing each night after work and so forth. It feels like the list is always building, but there is no better feeling than crossing a task of the list, even if it's just one 🙂
Wow it's been a long time! 🙂 Well, I have those bad days too, definitely… actually, I just had one of those yesterday… and I sucked it up. I think that if we keep on thinking how bad we don't wanna do something it's just gonna make it much harder… so instead, I shut the heck up, put some music on and just try to get it over it… and usually I ended up getting it done and thinking “why was I so paranoid about doing this anyway, it wasn't that bad… ” d:
Brown juice! I could really go for one right now!
I'm having trouble sleeping too! Uh I've always been a morning person but now I'm having trouble keeping my eyes open the whole day ): Not sure what that's all about, I hope it passes and SOON. 🙂
xx
Uggh! Your post reminded me of days gone by with multiple to do lists stacked on top of each other. I hated it. I quit. I now am looking at price tags at the grocery store. 🙂 Can't have it all, I guess!?!
Sounds like you need to read my favorite book of all time; “Slowing Down to the Speed of Life”, by Richard Carlson and Joe (can't forget his last name). It's a great one!
For daily tasks, I try to remind myself that I'll feel so much better when they're done and the tasks won't take that much time. But even that's been a problem this week with a cold sucking my energy. 😛
The socca sounds great! And the carrot balls sound wonderful.
I'm convinced. I need a greenstar
Zeeeeeevia…. love that stuff. I'm dying to try all the new flavors… hellooooo Mountain Dew and cream soda and grape and Fresca! 🙂
I totally have girl crushes too, not weird at all. 😉
Pingback: european textile news