Thinking about procrastination as if it is an actual scam - because it is one.
One of my friends from high school reached out to me on Facebook. She said she wanted to connect and I was genuinely happy to hear from her. It had been years. A minute into the conversation, I realized that she had a plan — and it was to build her network marketing business. I believe if the conversation went well I would have been a new customer (or client).
I wasn’t interested, and I also felt kind of bad about the experience. I thought she wanted to connect with me, but she wanted something more than a life update and renewed relationship.
I don’t think that she was wrong. I just thought there was something different coming from the conversation.
If she reaches out again, I’ll be better prepared.
I think procrastination is like that. You are minding your own business; just living your life. Then it calls you out of your path, and you’re like — this is nice, necessary even, I need this break. You need time to just relax, right? Take your mind off of things.
Hours later, or let’s be honest days or months later, you realize you got bamboozled. Procrastination had nothing to offer. Nothing. Sure, it felt good for a while when you thought there was comfort coming your way. But, at the end of it, you have time you can’t get back, advanced knowledge about a TV series or YouTube Channel that you’ve binged, and you haven’t accomplished anything.
The tricky thing about procrastination is that it masquerades itself so well. I firmly believe that a “good” thing can quickly become “bad” depending on the context. Rest is an intentional time to restore and renew energy. Procrastination introduces itself that way, but it is really just there to help you avoid things that bring you negative anticipation. Rest will tell you exactly when it’s coming through, procrastination seems to always show up when things get challenging. Rest leaves you feeling more capable of accomplishing something. Procrastination leaves you feeling more interested in procrastination.
Procrastination is like a scammer that uses your own fear against you, except it doesn’t take your money, it takes your time and that’s worse. I used to think that the hardest working people, who accomplished the most, didn’t procrastinate.
(They do it, too.)
No matter how confident and productive we are, most of us are fearful of something that we have to do. Procrastination smells that fear like an animal and is ready to eat up your time in a moment. Before it comes around again, we just need to remember that real rest and reflection isn’t fueled by fear, it is fueled by faith that there is something we need to do and we desire to give our best to it.
Here’s to all of us not allowing ourselves to get scammed by anymore.