To this day I struggle with procrastination, and unfortunately it has always been a big part of my life. It feels like a constant weight is on my shoulders whenever I have responsibilities and I simply choose to postpone them willingly. For this reason I grew to loathe myself whenever I fell into the conformity of leaving everything at the last minute. However, not so long ago I had a sudden urge to change this bad habit. Thanks to my cousin’s love and support on the matter, and my own self-reflection, I came to realize that procrastination wasn’t bringing me any happiness nor long lasting pleasure. So I knew I had to make that change. But where was I going to start? Was it going to work? This is the story of how I consciously battled with procrastination. Let’s begin:
One of the biggest problems I still have is that I’m not well organized. I become overwhelmed with everything I need to do, so I end up doing nothing. Imagine you’re facing a giant mountain that you have to climb in order to reach the top where your end goal is. You look up at its peak and the height of the mountain alone makes you feel intimidated to even set foot on it. So, you decide to postpone this trip for another time when “your head is in the right place”. Spoiler alert: it never will be. Although if you, the climber, take a short hike up the mountain towards the peak everyday you’ll eventually reach it; nobody said you had to climb the mountain in one day. That’s exactly how I feel when being faced with all my responsibilities. I realized that if I take things slow, little by little, I’m able to do all the things I want to do. And I’m proud to say I took that first step (the hardest one to make) towards the mountain I’ve faced since day one.
The first thing I did was make a list of all the things I wanted to accomplish; from my biggest dreams to my daily chores. This way I could actually see the things I needed to get done and the things I strive for, all in one place. Then, I organized these goals to choose which ones I’d be doing for the week, and after that I simply structured my week in a calendar. On Monday I had to crochet a few small flowers (because one of my long-term goals is to learn how to crochet) and on Tuesday I’d read a few pages of The Love Hypothesis, since I want to become an avid reader. It was a bit hard to follow through, especially since I work part time and study, but of course I structured my chores depending on how much “free” time I have that particular day. With this I was finally able to begin my journey of resoluteness!
In the first structured week, I admit, I failed to follow through often on my tasks. But in the end I pushed myself to put in the effort to fulfill my duties for the sake of my own wellness.I can safely say that I started on the right path to success now that I’m about to start my second week. Last of all, for those of you still staring at that humongous mountain, I’ll tell you this: nobody can push you forward to make you want to climb it. You’re the one who has to stand up by yourself and take the scariest first step you’ll ever make. The bottom of the mountain might seem comfortable and peaceful, but with each passing moment the mountain will seem bigger and taller and you won’t be able to ignore its presence anymore. Though one day, just like it happened to me, you’ll be able to move on your own and hike up the mountain to surpass your procrastination. You’ve got this!