Procrastination – Make An Honest Assessment
- May 3, 2023
- 4 min read
Updated: May 4, 2023
Written by: Brenda K. Johnson, Senior Level Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
I finally admitted I was procrastinating. Stop. Take 10 minutes and look at where your life is. I mean, really, look at where your life is. Are you where you want to be right now? Not only are you making the money that you want to make. But are you happy like you thought you should be? Are you in the position that you thought you should be? And if not, why not.
I Asked Myself Those Questions
The other night I had to stop and look back at my life and ask some hard questions. Yes, I have traveled the world. Yes, I have done some amazing things. But do I feel I have done and finished everything I want or need to finish? No. I had to ask myself why? Why are these projects not finished?
I have books that are almost finished but I haven't finished. I asked myself a hard question. Why are those books not finished? Before I could answer, my son called me and we had a conversation and the first thing he said was. “Mom, I’m procrastinating right now.” He admitted it to himself. He is active-duty in the Air Force and completed his degree graduating Summa Cum Laude a few months ago. If he could admit that to himself, I have no excuse.
At the top of his class. And I thought, how did he do that and work full-time? He did it because he didn’t procrastinate. He could then look at his life and see that now he was procrastinating. He had disciplined himself so much. He had stopped going out. Stopped hanging out. He set a day to read all the assignments. And another day to write his papers. With that method, he accomplished a goal that he had set for himself.
Some Conversations Make You Think
After that conversation, I was deep in thought. He has created a simple method that can work for anyone and anything if we want it bad enough.
It’s not hard. It’s not as difficult as we assumed. It’s a matter of extreme focus. Having a target in front of you and not stopping until you hit that target.
How many of us want to commit today to creating a target? And then aiming for it? Without a target, there is nothing to hit.
Where Are The Rest Of Us Going Wrong?
Think about how much time we waste. How much time do we spend doing what? Is it something that is helping to achieve our future goals or dreams of success?
As a business coach, I talk to people all the time. Most of them tell me they are too busy to work on their future.
They do not actually say “to work on their future.” But that is what they are saying without saying it.
The job will go on without you. If you were not there, they would hire someone else. You can be replaced at a job.
Many of us are so convinced that the job cannot go on without us. And we stay and work for years and years without enough for retirement. You do realize you retire with a partial income? Not the full job income that was not enough in the first place. That is why so many people have multiple jobs.
Keep your job, but do something for yourself. Your future.
Are You Ready To Change?
Start by doing a self-assessment of where you really are. Then start now whatever the project. Start today. If it’s a book, write a paragraph or a page, or a chapter daily or weekly. If it’s a business plan, start now. Whatever it is, do something on it to start or finish.
Do Not Start Another Project Until Finished
Commit to not start another project until you start or finish that one. Do not open another chapter in your life until you finish the half-done work. I will join you. You are not alone. Many of us have unfinished or half-finished works.
When I think about the movie The Matrix, they asked if he wanted the blue pill or the red pill. “Morpheus says, take the blue pill the story ends. Take the red pill you stay in Wonderland…” Which pill are you taking each day of your life? Waking up daily to the same routine is the blue pill.
Making a major change is taking the red pill. The red pill will take you on the ride of a lifetime.
Join me in taking the red pill. That is the journey to change your life forever. Take a walk on another side of the journey and see where it leads you. Join the one to five percent who have walked on the wild side of life and have not looked back.
Brenda K. Johnson, Senior Level Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
BRENDA K. JOHNSON is a multi-focused retired U.S. Army Officer and businesswoman who has lived and worked internationally in both beautiful and dangerous locations. Brenda grew up in a single-parent home with a business-owning mother. She has volunteered with many veterans and prison reform organizations and currently is a board member for Keystone College in Pennsylvania. Coaching basketball for girls led to establishing a women’s basketball team for a College in Doha, Qatar. Brenda is a writer and motivational speaker.
Brenda K. Johnson is using her years of experience as a military training officer and business owner to write and share her professional heartfelt experiences as a co-author in Intuitive Living. Her chapter entitled “S + S = Success” elevates women leaders, providing them with the tools to achieve their ambitions. As the founder of the Powerful Women Business Academy, Brenda coaches and mentors women empowering women to live their business dreams and contribute to the world by assisting others.
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