pro·cras·ti·nate
/prəˈkrastəˌnāt/verb
PROCRASTINATE implies blameworthy delay especially through laziness or apathy. procrastinates about making decisions.
https://www.merriam-webster.com
Procrastinating has always had a wrong impression on people.
We always think of it as a bad habit that destroys our goals and dreams in life.
But, ladies and gentlemen, procrastination is just a word that defines delaying or postponing action in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, isn’t it?
Is delaying or postponing really a bad thing? It depends on what you delay or postpone.
When we think of procrastinating, it’s always about something like delaying your assignments at work or postponing your planned schedule for exercise or gym, or delaying whatever “should’s” activities that are supposed to make a productive day.
How about we think of the other way?
Let’s start thinking about delaying the bad habits such as postponing to buy your favorite unhealthy food, postponing your scheduled online game, delaying your urge to watch porn (because you saw the girl you like in Facebook wearing almost nothing. Hah!).
But to change our way of thinking, we should be aware and learn how our mind works.
Nope, no need to study Psychology to understand the basic idea about how our mind works. Believe me, I studied Psychology in college without really… well, studying. I was not a good student. But lucky me, I graduated!
Our Dear Subconscious Mind’s Job
The job of the subconscious mind is to store data – thoughts, actions, memories, events.
It ensures that we respond precisely the way we are programmed and makes everything we say and do fit a pattern consistent with our self-concept.
It is designed that way to bring us back to the comfort zone that protects us from what’s unfamiliar or danger.
Do you know why it’s so easy to procrastinate the healthy things than delaying the unhealthy ones?
It’s because it’s already formed into a habit through repetition.
Habits are rooted in our subconscious mind, and our subconscious mind always brings us back to what’s familiar. – Click here for more.
Have you ever tried going for a workout for a few weeks and then you lost motivation, so you went back to your old routine of melting down on your bed eating unhealthy foods?
I did.
Our subconscious mind doesn’t like changes; that’s why we feel uncomfortable doing new things.
But the feeling of uncomfortable is a good sign that we’re on our way to change the old habit to a new one.
Our Dear Subconscious Mind Is Just Doing Its Job
The human mind is much like a farmer’s land. You may plant in that land whatever you choose. The land doesn’t care what is planted. But what we plant it must return to us.”
– Earl Nightingale
Our subconscious mind stores whatever information we gather.
It doesn’t care if it’s healthy or unhealthy.
It’s just doing its job to make a pattern of what’s being repeated.
As Hal Elrod said, each of our choices, actions, and thoughts is monumental because it is determining who we are becoming.
He said that we mistakenly assume that each choice we make, and each individual action we take is only affecting that particular moment.
You may think that it’s no big deal to procrastinate a project, or you eat unhealthy food because you’ll get a “do-over” tomorrow and you’ll make a better choice next time.
But the truth is it’s what you’re doing now that is determining who you’re becoming, and who you’re becoming will always determine the quality and direction of your life.
So, you choose what to procrastinate wisely.
Rules to Shift From Procrastinating the Good Stuffs to Procrastinating the Bad Stuffs
Building new habits is kind of tricky.
It makes you feel like bad habits are really more natural to do than the good ones, but that is just a limiting belief.
If you do it the right way, you will eventually start to think the other way around.
You will start feeling that good habits are more comfortable to do than the bad ones.
It is because you have shifted your paradigm – your subconscious programming.
Here are four simple but undeniably effective rules you can follow not only in procrastinating a bad habit but also in building new habits:
Related Posts: Your Nutritional Intake Is Responsible for Your Moods | The Power of Your Subconscious
Rule #1: Start small.
When I started with exercise, I made a goal of planking for 5-10 seconds per day.
When I started with reading books, I made a goal of reading 1 page per day.
When I started with writing, I made a goal of writing 50 words per day.
When I’m motivated, I exceed the goal.
But when I’m not, or when I’m not able to do more out of certain events, I just stick with the target.
Make a goal of procrastinating one small bad habit at a time.
Do not try to procrastinate all the bad things you can think of all at once.
Besides, one thing is enough to train your mind to learn to delay the stuff that doesn’t do you any good.
Rule #2: Be consistent and don’t skip a day.
As Stephen Guise said, repetition is the language of the subconscious brain.
If you repeat it enough, it becomes a habit over time.
That’s the reason why you should follow Rule #1.
Repetition and consistency are not hard to follow if your goals are so small as one push-up a day. Yeah, you heard me, one push-up a day works! Stephen Guise started with it with a big tummy, and now he goes to the gym several times a week out of habit. Read his book Mini Habits and find out yourself, his strategies worked for me too.
Consistency is much more important than quantity in this concept.
If you procrastinate one lousy habit every day, your mind will start to get used to it.
Rule #3: Be an “imperfectionist.”
Perfectionism causes you to avoid taking action.
Don’t be afraid to fail, care more about putting in the work as you improve over time.
If you skip a day, accept the failure but always go back on track.
Click here to understand more about why Perfectionism is bound for you to fail.
Rule #4: Be patient.
Patience all the passion of great hearts.
Everything you work for will bear fruits in time.
One thing to make persistence easier to attain is to be mindful of the present moment.
Appreciate every second of what you do, love what you have and who you are now while you are on your way making your habits to who you want to be.
Knowing is empty if you don’t put them into action.
If you follow these rules and actually put them into action, I guarantee you that they will change your life, they changed mine and many others.
If you have questions or opinions that you want to share, leave your comments below.
