Procrastination Equals Death

I believe that life is a puzzle, made up of millions of pieces, or in other words experiences; career, school, relationships, money, vacation, camp, good times, bad times, sickness, regret, deceit, etc. This list could literally go on forever, but what is important to realize is that every single experience that takes place in your world will provide you with a piece to your puzzle of life. Each of these pieces will enable you to get closer to completing your puzzle and revealing your ideal life.

Now you might be asking yourself, “How many people get to the point of actually completing their puzzle?” And the answer is none because human beings are most comfortable when they are “fence sitting.” The definition of a “fence sitter” is someone whose complacency and over-analysis of every situation prevents personal growth and ultimately the puzzle from being completed. We were born to take action, even if the action we take is not in the direction of our ideal life, it still enables us to begin a journey and experience everything that the world will present on our path. Procrastination equals a slow death because it results in stagnation, emptiness, and a feeling of regret. When we are stuck in this place, opportunities that could have become available fly by the waist side as we are oblivious to our surrounding environment.

For example, maybe you are overweight and as a result of being a few extra pounds, you begin to procrastinate when it comes to diet, exercise, and personal development, as it seems like it will take forever to complete this section of your puzzle of life. Unfortunately, a side effect of your lack of action is that your self-worth diminishes, your relationships suffer, you perform poorly, and you wake up every morning with absolutely no energy, passion, or will to live. This dilemma you are facing has absolutely nothing to do with being a few pounds overweight, but everything to do with NOT TAKING ACTION. As I mentioned before, procrastination is a slow and painful death where you watch the image that looks back at you from the mirror begin to dissipate, as your identity is lost and you become a shell of what you once were.

Even if weight is not your challenge, and instead career, relationships, finances, or spirituality is an issue that you face, the underlying root to the quandary is a lack of action. Action does not only need to be physical, as in diet and exercise, but rather comes in a variety of forms. The most important component to action is the space between your ears. Two questions that you should ask yourself are:

Where is this taking place in my life?

And

Why am I allowing it took occur?

The “where” is something that only you can answer, but the “why” is going to be fairly consistent amongst all of you because it deals with issues associated with self-worth and an inability to start the process.

If you are committed to making tomorrow different then listen to what your “gut” is telling you to do. Your intuition will never lead you on a path where your growth will be stifled, but it is important to realize that there is a good chance your decision will elicit an uncomfortable emotion. This feeling of doubt is called “The Unknown,” because regardless of what path you take, it will be uncharted territory in your world. But like Alan Alda once said, “You have to leave the city of your comfort zone and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.”

It is time to trust yourself to continue building the puzzle of your life because even if there are 1,000’s of pieces, and you do not know where to start, realize that you possess all of the tools you need to take action and live a life filled with endless opportunities.

Is procrastinating getting in the way of your LIFE?

What does this mean to you? Please leave a comment.

Some pictures from Flickr.