You can know more about the theories of time management than Stephen Covey, David Allen, and all the other gurus put together, and still not be a doer.
It’s not that hard to prioritize the things in your life. And, assuming you have the skills and training for what you need to do, it’s generally not that hard to do what you need to do. It’s not always pleasant, of course, but life is not a 75-year-long vacation.
The problem you can run into, and I have done it plenty of times, is to put off what you can go ahead and do. We say to ourselves things like
- I really don’t have the energy for this right now.
- I’ll wait until my mind is more refreshed … this is going to take a lot of brainpower.
- I really should wait until Joe delivers that background study, as it could save me a bit of research. (Even though this is the lowest thing on Joe’s list of priorities.)
And so on. And some of these excuses could even have validity, especially if you want the end product to be “just perfect.”
But more often than not, they are just excuses. There is almost always some part of the project that you can just go ahead and do. And, as soon as you, other parts of it start falling into place, too.
So, have I told you anything you didn’t know? God I hope not. But, I gave you, and me, a reminder that Nike’s slogan is a good one for all of us to remember and apply. I needed to remind myself of it recently, and I am glad I did. Shame of it is that I wasted a day and a half before reminding myself to Just Do It.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
That’s so true Bruce. It’s all too easy to escape into a comfort zone. Remaining present with your fears is not so warm and fuzzy. And you are right — taking a small action leads to the next action, which leads to…
I’ve had to deal with quite a bit of this, and it’s important to realize that you don’t have to do everything at once. As long as you have a direction, it’s enough to take one small step today. Every time you do that, you empower yourself to take further steps. Before you know it you’ve built some real value.
Ciao,
John
Hi John,
Thank you for the comments. You are definitely right.
To all readers, check out John’s Website: He is a fantastic artist.