How come that the things that would propel us forwards the most seem to bye the things we like to procrastinate the most?
We’ve all been there – spending hours with cleaning the house, rummaging in drawers and hanging on to mementos from the past when really, what we actually wanted to get done by then, is getting lost & forgotten in the realms of denial.
And since we’re all adults, we actually know better.
We know that cleaning the house is probably not as urgent as that thing we need to do, that would probably bring the great change to our lives that we were wishing for.
So, what’s the reason for this behavior?
It’s really interesting to look at the why’s to procrastination, because once we know, we can get past. it.
- Fear of the unknown
First of all, that’s okay. It’s perfectly human to fear change. Change means that we have to adapt to new situations, it means that we have to leave the comfort zone, and probably that we have to commit to a whole new learning curve. If this is the case, some journaling or a deep talk with someone who knows you well might be of great help. Try to remember all the times you stepped up and made something new happen. All that can really happen is growth!
2. Self-worth Struggles
This is a big one. And it sits deep within your subconscious. If you keep yourself from doing that one step that would enhance your life for the better, and you have a lot of negative self-talk going on around this topic, you might have a program running (we have a lot of program-like mechanisms in our brains) that has been installed during your childhood or somewhere along your life. This usually happens by values and opinions we grow up with like „A woman is not supposed to _____“ or „People who do ______ are a burden to everyone!“. Those thoughts can be embedded deep within your subconscious and make you feel bad for pursuing the growth you’re after. If you want to find out if this is the case for you, try to become really observant for a day or two of your self-talk. Does the overall tone resemble someone you grew up with? Maybe you are carrying limitations that no longer serve you with you here.
3. I’ts not what you really want
Now, first of all, please be careful with this one. Because it’s very easy to say you don’t really want to move to that city or go to that school or take that test or ask for that promotion – when it’s really 1. or 2. mentioned before that applies to your situation. When you’re procrastinating something that someone else wants you to do, you haven’t been all honest with yourself about what you want. Why? Because when you openly admit that you actually want to raise horses by the sea or teach yoga or just really don’t care about new flooring – you have to face conflict with the person who initially wants you to do the other thing. Keep in mind, that the other person might have pure intentions and just wants what they think is best for you. But take a close and honest look at what your soul really wants. It might also be that when you’re radically honest with what you want, you’ll have to face big changes, and fear of the unknown kicks right in with this.
So there you have it, the three most common reasons for procrastination.
If one or more of these apply to you, you just made the first step towards breaking the spell – you know where it came from and now, you can go and work out the root of the problem.
Was this helpful for you?
I’d love for you to let me know how!
Come & join the conversation over at The Sensitive Warrior Tribe facebook group, or leave a comment below!!
