Procrastination

April 15, 2015 By

Procrastination is the practice of carrying out less urgent tasks in preference to more urgent ones, or doing more pleasurable things in place of less pleasurable ones, and thus putting off impending tasks to a later time, sometimes to the “last minute” before a deadline.

Is procrastination a good or an evil…Which quote fits you best?

“Never put off for tomorrow, what you can do today.”
– Thomas Jefferson

or

“Never put off till tomorrow what may be done day after tomorrow just as well.”
– Mark Twain

Procrastination is so easy to come by, distraction is now literally at our finger tips.  How easy is it to get lost in the world of the on-line abyss, with email, social media, and YouTube.  (who has not wasted hours watching screaming goat videos), but believe it or not the art of procrastination has been around as long as there has been someway to record human behaviours.  Why do we purposely add  the additional stresses caused by procrastination?  Especially in this stress ridden, hurry up and wait laden society.  We all know that stress has negative impacts on every aspect of our health, including physical, mental, social and professional. However, knowing all this we do we all do it anyway.  So why?

According to Tim Pychyl, a procrastination researcher at Carleton University in Ottawa, The more aversive a task is to you, the more you’ll resist it, and the more likely you are to procrastinate. Pychyl, in his research, identified a number of task characteristics that make you more likely to procrastinate. Tasks that are aversive tend to:

  • Be boring
  • Be frustrating
  • Be difficult
  • Lack personal meaning and intrinsic rewards
  • Be ambiguous (you don’t know how to do it)
  • Be unstructured

The more negative emotions you show toward a certain task, the more likely you are to procrastinate.  He describes procrastination as the gap between intention and action…a weakness of will if you may.  Who wants to spend time doing something from the above mentioned list when you could be doing something that gives a more self gratifying feeling.  Accounting Vs. Reading a book, Reading a book Vs. Watching your favourite TV show, Watching your favourite TV show Vs. going to lunch with friends…But in the end the accounting still needs to get done, no matter how much you put it off.

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Filed Under: My Story Tagged With: , , ,

Accountability

November 10, 2014 By

According to the on-line Merriam Webster Dictionary accountability is defined as this…ACCOUNTABILITY – the quality or state of being accountable; especially, an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one’s actions.  So what do they say is accountable … ACCOUNTABLE – required to explain actions or decisions to someone,  required to be responsible for something.

Seems easy enough!  Yeah Right!

So  with all that said, How does one actually become more accountable to what ever it is they are wanting to be more accountable to?  I have no idea… so to the internet I go…

Here’s what WikiHow had to say on the subject.

Being accountable can be a scary, yet essential thing, especially if you are on the front lines, in business, in ministry, or in any aspect of life. Allowing other people to be involved in your life, “letting others in”, so to speak, can help you be a better leader and person, and help implement a more productive, happy life. There are several things you can do to be accountable:

8 Steps on how to become more accountable….

  1. Think of someone you know who you admire and you believe will speak truth into your life. ~
  2. Communicate with that person via phone, internet, or in person, and set up a time to talk. ~
  3. Bounce your ideas off the other person, honestly telling them what is on your heart. ~
  4. Humbly share any weaknesses or faults you may have that have or could hinder progress.~
  5. Listen to anything they have to say, even if it is constructive criticism, and decide what part of their advice you will follow. ~
  6. Meet with them in a week or two to follow-up on what was discussed. ~
  7. Evaluate whether any improvements have been made, any advice was taken, or what could be done differently. ~
  8. Own out loud with another person your five personal strengths and five growing edge behaviors, Then commit with that same person to practice at least two behaviors that will lead to change(s).

Sounds simple enough… It sounds like a term I’ve heard of many times “Peer Coach”.  I have had the pleasure of listening to Verne Harnish speak on a few occasions.  His insights and belief of the importance of having a peer Coach has helped not only himself, but business’s grow.  Here’s some information to check out his take on the importance of Peer Coaching.

Who will be YOUR peer coach, and help YOU become more accountable??

“Accountability separates the wishers in life from the action-takers that care enough about their future to account for their daily actions.”  – John Di Lemme

 

Filed Under: Learning, Life Tagged With: , ,

So proud!!

August 21, 2013 By

We are in the idle of our summer vacation, the date is July 15, 2013. We are on the opposite side of the country in one of the major cities in Newfoundland…Gander of all places. We stop to visit the airplane museum, as aviation is something both the kids are interested in. We go through the museum, which is not very large, by any means, and with a 5 year old and a 7 year old, the attention to detail is the very first thing to go. We have been at the museum for about an hour, and they both ask me what mi am looking at. It was looking at a piece of the World Trade Centre. The museum was the proud recipient of an actual piece of an I beam cut from the wreckage of the 911 tragedy. This piece of iron was given to the City of Gander NL in appreciation for what they did to help the world when the US airspace was shut down to air travel. This small community on the eastern tip of Canada population doubled in just a matter of hours, due to planes being grounded. The selflessness of the people of Gander and surrounding communities made it possible for thousands of travels to have a safe haven during a time of uncertainty, and chaos. Along with the this iconic piece of gratitude, the museum had a book of letters. Every letter thanked the people of Gander, and surrounding area for their caring hospitality. I went through almost everyone of these letters, and it was heart wrenching to see the love, and thanks from around the world. There was even a letter from my own home town, from a couple who where grounded in Kansas, but wanted to write to show their appreciation for the communities for the way that they had shown the world the such an amazing representation of Canada as a country. I had never been so proud to be a Canadian.

Although this us an amazing story, and a true proud Canadian moment, the moment came as a parent as both my kids listened intently to me resell the story of 911, and walk them through the visuals of the display. They were a little afraid at first, and we discussed the fear factor, and the “there are bad people in this world” talk. They could not understand how someone could do something to hurt so so many people. (Proud moment #2). About 45 minutes later, they noticed a collection jar. She asked what it is for. I read her the sign that was with the jar, and explained that the money collected is split between helping to maintain the museum and helping those that were affected by the collapse of the towers. Again they both listened, and you could see their wheels spinning. But we continued on with the tour which ended up in the gift shop.

Each of my kids were given $50 to purchase souvenirs along the trip. Which they both did, I gave them their wallets, and they choose their own gifts, which were not the mementos that they usually choose, they choose items that they felt would help the, remember that stop of the trip (a desk piece, and a necklace). Both of their purchases were around $10. (Proud moment #3).

Then the most amazing thing (at least in my eyes) happened. My Son (who is 7) walked up to the collection jar, pulled out and pulled out a $20 bill, and asked my husband to put it in the collection Jar. My husband asked what he was doing, and Jackson’s answered floored me. He said that they need the money more then he needed souvenirs. WOW!! Both my husband and I were flabbergasted that a 7 year old would act so selfless. My Husband turned to my son, and said that his offer was very generous, and that we would give the donation, so that he could use his money for other things. This confused him a little as he watched his father place a $20 bill from his wallet, he then again opened his wallet, and gave his dad a toonie, as a Donation, saying that he wanted to give something of his. (Proud moment #4). Then to top things off he turns to his little sister and tells her that she needs to give something too, explaining that we have a lot of good things, and that it is important to share, and she as well digs in the wallet, and pulls out a toonie to place in the jar. (Proud moment #5).

What a day. They really do listen, and more importantly they understand.

WOW!!

Filed Under: Family, Goals, Info, Kids, My Story, The Penny Tagged With: , , ,
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