Procrastination, if you don't do it yourself, you likely know someone who does do it. I personally only have to look in the mirror to see someone who practices a selective art of procrastination. I like to think it is only around things that are not important or don't really matter. however, if that is truly the case, why do these things stay on the "to do" list?
Recently I heard some thoughts on procrastination and they got me to think. So when we procrastinate around something we have the time to do, but instead choose to do something else, is it truly arrogant in that we think we will have more time to do it some other time or we believe it is not important and can wait? This was the perspective that was shared on procrastination, and I thought that it seemed to be true.
Procrastination is a pretty good measure of both how much something is prioritized at that moment in time and how much it may seem to matter in the future. People procrastinate about many things, like getting a medical exam. In the moment it seems like it might be able to wait - but perhaps the waiting makes things a little worse. People also procrastinate around deadlines, sometimes they squeak things in and sometimes they miss an opportunity. If it really mattered would you be willing to risk not getting something done? Procrastination certainly seems like it can be telling about what we prioritize to be of value in a moment and if it is important and remains on a list, it tells us a bit about our arrogance in believing we will live long enough to get it done - or perhaps to allow it to diminish in importance.
In the end all this thought on procrastination reinforced the idea to be aware of the choices I make, why I make those choices, and the impact my choice will have. It was also a little prod to remind me, if it is on the list and I have the energy and means to do it, why not just do it?! Procrastination does not move things forward, and to maintain the momentum of life, we must keep moving forward with as minimal drag as possible.
