It turns out procrastination is not typically a function of laziness, apathy or work ethic as it is often regarded to be. It’s a neurotic self-defense behavior that develops to protect a person’s sense of self-worth.
You see, procrastinators tend to be people who have, for whatever reason, developed to perceive an unusually strong association between their performance and their value as a person. This makes failure or criticism disproportionately painful, which leads naturally to hesitancy when it comes to the prospect of doing anything that reflects their ability — which is pretty much everything.
But in real life, you can’t avoid doing things. We have to earn a living, do our taxes, have difficult conversations sometimes. Human life requires confronting uncertainty and risk, so pressure mounts. Procrastination gives a person a temporary hit of relief from this pressure of “having to do” things, which is a self-rewarding behavior. So it continues and becomes the normal way to respond to these pressures.
Particularly prone to serious procrastination problems are children who grew up with unusually high expectations placed on them. Their older siblings may have been high achievers, leaving big shoes to fill, or their parents may have had neurotic and inhuman expectations of their own, or else they exhibited exceptional talents early on, and thereafter “average” performances were met with concern and suspicion from parents and teachers.
Almost every life improving task begins with goal setting. The in-between aspects/actual contributors are usually glossed over with lame phrases like “This may seem daunting, but hard work pays off!” Then, the self-help book or the yoga instructor or the inspiring blog congratulates you because, after following their vague instructions, you’ve achieved your goal!
Except you haven’t. At least, if you’re anything like me, you haven’t. You just keep fucking off or fucking up.
Failure and fuck ups pave life’s road. You will never stop failing or fucking up, but that’s how good character is built.
Luke Skywalker fucked up on Dagobah. Harry Potter fucked up the first time he tried to use Floo powder. Frodo Baggins fucked up pretty much incessantly. It happens. It’s OK. You’re among heroes.
“It looks like a Wandering Jew? I managed to kill one back in the day. You can make lots of cuttings off of it very easily. It roots in water, you could have lots of plants off your main one. Hope that helps!”
Much like Connor MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod, this plant cannot die.
I don’t know much about plants and I don’t have them around too often. Because I think plants are cool and want to eventually have them all over my home, I’ve tasked myself with keeping this one alive. It seems pretty un-kill-able, so I think this is a good place to start.
I’m not sure what type of plant it is - the former tenants of my apartment left it behind. As I said, I don’t know much about plants.
All right, well, wish me and Connor MacLeod “Good luck!”
toodeepforsleep asked:
Hey! Keep up the great work here! As an (almost!) twenty year old, your refined and concise view on the world around you is great to read so far!
I just fan girl’d in my pants. You’re a doll. Thank you!
I was inspired enough by Unfuck Your Habitat’s latest weekly challenge to clean my incredibly gross kitchen. I spent most of my afternoon lost in Dirty Dish Water Bay on a SOS pad raft. Here is the result:
Can I get a “fuck yeah?”
I’ve never been great at maintaining cleanliness, so I am setting up another challenge for myself (feel free to join me) (#dirtbag2013, #22plus). And don’t forget to follow Unfuck Your Habitat for killer tips and challenges.
The “Stop Being a Dirtbag Challenge” 2013
Mission: Take a photo of the kitchen, bathroom, living room, and bedroom everyday and post these photos on the internet.
Start Date: Saturday, February 23, 2013
Intended Result: The threat of shame should encourage cleanliness.
