Every November our backyard is littered with red, brown, and yellow leaves that overwhelm the grass below. And every year I vow get out the old-school rake and tarp and scoop them up myself. But, instead, every year I watch a team of landscapers with leaf blowers and goggles descend upon the yard with dogged determination. And every December I suffer waves of nausea and remorse when I get an exorbitant bill for work I could have done myself! The madness!
Worse yet, I wrap myself in the security blanket of paint-by-numbers excuses. “I’m way too busy. I don’t have the proper tools. Someday, I’ll get my act together.” But invariably, the pattern continues. Why? Because, it takes more than lip service and good intentions to break a pattern of procrastination. Waiting for someday is waiting too long.
This year, I focused on action! In October, I trekked to the Home Depot and proudly purchased three rakes, a pair of gloves, and a standard blue tarp. Old school. I then researched the county website to determine when they dispatched leaf pickup in my neighborhood. Finally, I carved out time in the early morning hours to attack the swarm of leaves. And three hours later, I looked up with exhaustion and pride at my accomplishment. Glorious! Why did I wait so long to make this happen? And why do many of us wait so long to attack our goals and tasks in our work and personal lives?
In our work lives, we strive to be the best at what we do. But we can’t wait for “some day” to elevate our level of excellence. Next sales call, I’ll prepare harder. Next year, I’ll get a head start on my assignments. Next project, I’ll conduct more in-depth research. Next case, I’ll take more seriously. Next practice, I’ll give maximum effort. Next quarter, I’ll pull my grades up. Optimism is a wonderful quality. But optimism without action will not change the trajectory of our lives. We don’t have to arrive at our destination in one giant leap. We just need to take the first small step. And we need to take that first step today. Tick tock! If we keep waiting to improve our habits, someday will never come.
The same is true in our personal lives. We all want strong family relationships and a tight circle of friends. We all want financial security. We all want to strike the right balance between work and play. But it will require some work. We can’t wait for the next opportunity to tell a family member how much they mean to us. We can’t wait until tomorrow to reign in our spending habits. We can’t commit to attending our children’s event or spending quality time with our friends next week. If we wait another moment, someday will constantly outpace us. Our journey towards action and personal fulfillment needs to start today.
And when we suffer a setback, that sense of urgency must increase exponentially. The sooner we address our failure, the sooner we can get back to realizing our true potential. Resiliency takes incredible courage. We need to fight the inclination to sulk and pout and blame others. We need to move forward despite the pain. We need to leave the past in the rear view mirror. Good things will happen if we remain active. But we cannot wait another second to reclaim our greatness. We cannot wait another second to focus on the future. We cannot wait another second to conquer our next incredible challenge. Our resilient journey must start today!
I’m here to tell you now…someday never comes! –Creedence Clearwater Revival
Our goals can be so lofty and complex, it is easy to put them off until another day. But that can lead to stagnation and disillusionment. Sometimes, it is better to take a small, concrete step toward our goal today than try to accomplish the entire task tomorrow. Think about all the goals and tasks we have hanging over our heads. We can’t possibly achieve them all at once. But we can chisel away at our goals today. It will require patience. It will require a plan. But why wait for someday when you can start right now?
It is Monday. It is early in the week. It is early in our life. We have so much left to accomplish. What are we going to tackle first? Take one step toward accomplishing one goal today! There is no time like the present. If we wait around for someday, it may never come.
Until next week, keep smiling.
I admire your jumping on the leaf project. I do recommend using blowers rather than rakes. Much more efficient and less pain. ??
Solid advice. It was an idyllic plan but certainly came with some downside. Leaf blower it is! 🙂
Love this message! I remember my 9th grade Social Studies teacher used to say “Procrastination is opportunity’s assassin.”
I love it, Karen! That might be a chapter title in my book.
Wow, lots to consider in this post. I suspect that Mark Twain was too busy white-washing fences to rake his leaves, for he wrote: “Never put off till tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow.”
And I suspect an Anonymous cardiologist penned this quote: “Procrastination: A hardening of the oughteries.”
But I appreciate your message, which echoes Rita Emmett: ““The dread of doing a task uses up more time and energy than doing the task itself.”
Now you just need to make sure the leaf collection truck comes before the wind blows them all on your neighbor’s yard…
All good quotes but I think Rita Emmett nailed it. We need to worry less and do more. Not always easy but action will always win out. About those leaves…yeah, the Quinns just inherited my leaf pile….