Procrastinators Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from chronic procrastination.
Procrastination is the grave in which opportunity is buried.
Falcon CI Tues. eve.
Hi all,
Just a quick check-in to get myself back on track. Totally procrastinating on getting on with my evening! So, enough web surfing. Time to:
Gotta get moving before it gets late. . .
Falcon
Check In/Check out
I thought I'd done this but I guess I just responded to the question about systems and didn't do a formal check in except in chatbox.
I did a major revamp of my task list as noted below, and the list for today is a lot smaller. I need to spend some more time thinking about how I can best keep it so that it keeps the most important stuff in front of me.
I finished Project D-T and advanced Project D-2. Also a quick phone call for Project P-5.
Still undone things on my list, but many fewer. Some trouble focusing today, but not because of being overwhelmed by a long list.
See you all tomorrow.
The Hero's Code:
Show up. Pay Attention. Speak the Truth. Let Go of the Outcome.
kromer 3:25 CI
Yuck, I'm having a really rough couple days.
Yesterday I stopped work around 4:30, even though I really had more I should have done. Last night I ended up staying at a friend's house, and I didn't get to campus until 11. I went to class, had lunch with friends, got my phone fixed and came home. (And found that my roommates had left the place a total mess, grr.
I'd wanted to go to square dancing tonight, but I don't think I responsibly can after the way I've procrastinated over the past couple days. I'd like to get in 5-6 more hours of (reasonably) focused work this evening. Given what my focus has been over the last couple days, I think I will need lots of breaks to make this work.
So, here's my plan for getting through my work. (I'll time log throughout so I can see where my time is going
--Break: change into comfortable dry clothes, make iced tea, listen to a song--
Work 1 hr--read 2 papers for nucleic acids classWork 1 hr--work on EYL's project, try to get it mostly done
--Break from work: listen to a song, spend 15 min doing dishes
Work 1 hr--finish up EYL's project and email her
--Break from work: call AG
--Break from work: finish cleaning kitchen,
get some dinner
Work 1 hr--Email WG and read paper to discuss w/ her
--Break from work: take a 15 min walk around the neighborhood, listen to a song
Work 1 hr--Write 1 pg of computational bio lab
OK, that sounds doable. Starting now!
Update 4:10--I'm starting work on EYL's project by coming up with a step-by-step plan for what I have left to do:
*
Test out scanning and clustering code*
Find TF clustering data*
Document output format for scanning code*
Gather all my work (started)*
Send email*
Get list of test datasets+emailI think in the next 50 min I can test the code and find the clustering data.
isabo 410pm
This site IS the greatest!!!
Had a pretty good day, although this morning was a little rushed. DD had a playdate and me and the mom had coffee. That was nice, break from the usual!
worked, spread gravel on soft mud, showered, made lunch, gathered books, water bottle and made list for grocery store. Got kids dressed, drove ds to work, got gas, went on the quickest grocery trip ever, where, of course. the cashier was having trouble with the till sigh dropped dd off at preschool, dropped cheque off, dropped books off, went home with intentions of poop scooping while weather so mild, but sat down, and started to check in on certain websites. Proceeded to do that for half an hour then saw how time was flying and cleaned mirror, counter, sink, toilet and floor around toilet. unloaded and loaded dishwasher cleaned countertop and sinks. Picked up DD and met friends at home for lunch and play. 2 hours later, rebooted laundry, loaded rest of dishes, ran dishwasher, CLEANED THE FISH TANK!! (only taken a month to actually do that instead of just write about it!) shopvacced bit of the flood in the basement ... urgh ... got meat out for supper, put meat in warm water to defrost quickly...sat down with the computer and started checking my sites again. And so, that was my day :) !
Off to go see if the pork chops are defrosted....I think I will coat them with a herbed breadcrumbs and fry 'em up. Mashed potatoes and peas. (The three P supper hehe)
Have a good night everyone!
Nothing is worth more than this day - Goethe
ByGodsGrace todays CI
Yes! This group is the greatest :-)
My Word and prayer for the day: 2 Cor 12:9 (the message translation) “My grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness.” Help me receive today Lord!
From the book “God Calling” (Daily devotional from 2 women who prayed and listened to what God said, 1932)
March 3 – GROW LIKE ME (This really spoke to me so I wanted to share it)
Think of Me. Look at Me often, and unconsciously you will grow like Me. You may never see it. The nearer you get to Me, the more you will see your unlikeness to Me. So be comforted, My children.
Your very deep sense of failure is a sure sign that you are growing nearer to Me. Remember too, it is only struggle that hurts. In sloth, spiritual, or mental, or physical, there is no sense of failure or discomfort, but with action, with effort, you are conscious not of strength but of weakness – at least, at first.
That is a sign of Life, of spiritual growth.
And remember My Strength is made perfect in weakness.
My music today: Casting Crowns, Crystal Lewis
My to do list: MIT: Finish and Mail Job2 (250) by 4:30
dd schoolRead Bible/PrayDaily CIBreakfast
Order Paper
Job2 Envelope addressing
Job2 Envelope Printing
Call DT, order ok
Post Office stamps
Job2 pick up printer
dd school
Job2 prepare for mail – MAIL by 4:30
Dd st 5:15
Things I overscheduled or to improve on today J (thanks again clement for helping me!)
Email Job3 invoice (and schedule)
difficult call about finances to friend Part 2
respond to t email
byGodsGrace todays CI
My to do list: MIT: Finish and Mail Job2 (250) by 4:30 DONE, YAY! :-)
dd schoolRead Bible/PrayDaily CIBreakfastOrder PaperJob2 Envelope addressingJob2 Envelope Printing almost done!Call DT, order okPost Office stampsJob2 pick up printerdd schoolJob2 prepare for mail – MAIL by 4:30job2 email
Dd st 5:15Things I overscheduled or to improve on today J (thanks again clement for helping me!)
Email Job3 invoice (and schedule)
difficult call about finances to friend Part 2
respond to t email
re: it is only struggle that hurts.
your "grow like me" really hit me. thanks.
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the touch of the master's hand: http://procrastinators-anonymous.org/node/1898#comment-27748
"fall down seven times, get up eight" - japanese proverb
I know me too!
When God deals with you it is just so personal and right to the heart of things... glad this helped you too :-) He knows right where we are and what we need to hear, I know it really helped me A LOT! Oh, and thank you again Clement for helping me with my list, I was making myself feel bad and guess I am used to it and needed a friend to point it out, thank you! Feel much better putting it the new way!
Journey 10 am YES it is the greatest, isn't it?
Good morning! I'm getting a late start on work today, but I've been to the gym, the grocery store, had a nice unhealthy breakfast of cinnamon rolls, read email, and did some indepth thinking about my "system" thanks to Chickadee!
Now time to go put that system into action.
Back in chatbox in 45 mins or so with today's todo list in my hot little hand. Of course, I will put the things I've already done on there so I can cross them off, lol.
Jo
Show up. Do your work. Go home.
11:35am check in babarino
Thankyou for starter recycler.
Daily check in
Va file(done)
Rt(done)
Member lists(in progress)
Personal
12step meeting(done)
Clean bathrooms(done)
I am amazed at how much more I get done using this sight.no getting bogged down in doubts and anxiety.just working on what I should be.I have just started using check in's but I am finding it useful so far.
day's mantra
my mantra for the day:
seek god in your uncomfortable place, dont just look for an exit.
i have been finding great power in this idea.
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the touch of the master's hand: http://procrastinators-anonymous.org/node/1898#comment-27748
"fall down seven times, get up eight" - japanese proverb
wow, that is powerful :)
Hi Clement!
Wow, that is powerful! Thanks! :)
Recycler
Recycler
Thank you, gals & guys, for being here! :)
chick's question about lists and systems--
maybe this belongs somewhere else?
I'm at a sort of plateau where I need more routines and more thought about integrating long-term and short term. This is hard for me full stop and I sense that I can make progress if I use my lists more systematically. Now I only have daily lists. I realize better lists won;t take away the discomfort of avoided tasks, but they might help me face them more.
I'm curious to hear of others' top tips for lists, systems and routines that work, don't become a nag and support recovery. (What is the flylady control journal anyway?)
--If this belongs somewhere else i'm happy to move it there.
thanks all for being here, sharing and giving me hope.
control journal
FlyLady's control journal is a collection of lists that detail your day, right from waking to going to bed. IE, get up, make bed, putter to bathroom, do absolutions, get dressed to shoes, wipe down mirror counter sink, swish toilet, gather laundry...
It is worth looking into, there always seems to be things you can pull from the site that are extremely useful!
Nothing is worth more than this day - Goethe
i'm list-less
lol :)
actually i like Remember the Milk. I would even say i 'use' it if i had actually logged into it in the past week =P
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the touch of the master's hand: http://procrastinators-anonymous.org/node/1898#comment-27748
"fall down seven times, get up eight" - japanese proverb
GeorgeSmiley's approaches
1) I basically like the approach in David Allen's Getting Things Done. I'm erratic in my execution of it.
2) I pretty much rely on Outlook to keep my task lists, and I've modified it according to ideas in Michel Linenberger's "Total Workday Control Using Microsoft Outlook." I just re-read the book this morning and realized how far I've drifted from his recommendations, though, and I think that's contributed to my decreasing productivity of late, so this morning I went thru my task list and made a number of changes to try to bring it more in line with his recommendations. He uses a lot of Getting Things Done strategies [focusing on "next actions" for instance, and breaking tasks down into mini projects so that individual steps are identified and clearly defined in action terms].
3) Like jo I'm using Action Outline, but more as a note-taking program. I keep my master lists in Outlook. Since I'm working at home 90% of the time I don't need this to be "portable" and I have become comfortable with Outlook, esp. with Linenberger.
4) For home tasks I've started a paper notebook and I'm trying the AutoFocus technique proposed by a guy named Mark Forster. Too soon to say whether that's going to work or not.
5) One thing I do in Outlook that's not in Linenberger: I typically have a lot of projects going at once that span many days (I'm a freelance writer and editor). For each project I create a multiple-day appointment in the outlook calendar, spanning the entire window of time. [I check the "all day event" box when setting them up.] These then display above the calendar so that I see all my projects at once. I usually have the calendar display (1 day or 5 day) with the task pad to the right.
The Hero's Code:
Show up. Pay Attention. Speak the Truth. Let Go of the Outcome.
re: lists and systems
This is a great topic for me as my system is completely disorganized and needs to be redone!
I try to follow a modified GTD system, with a master list of projects, daily list of things to do, and a list of things to do daily/weekly/monthly.
I WAS keeping my daily list in Outlook Task Manager, but I'm converting over to Remember the Milk. I find it easier to use and I can access it from both my home and work computer. I can also print out a handy dandy checklist with check off boxes. It is helpful to me, once I make my plan for today, to disconnect from all the other lists, keep today's list in front of me, and forget about anything that is not on today's list. One day at a time!
I WAS keeping my master project list in Action Outline and I need to make a decision about that. The difficulty there is that I have to keep it updated in one place and remember to copy it off somewhere. And I have let is slide so it's totally out of date. The master project list NEEDs to be updated weekly or it becomes fairly useless fairly fast!
Anyway, when I'm being organized
, this is what I do:
1. Do a "mind sweep" on paper, writing down anything that is on my mind right now that I need or want to do.
2. Check my calendar for the day.
3. Review yesterday's list, my (currently nonexistent) next action list, and make a todo list for TODAY in RTM.
4. Prioritize the tasks on today's todo list, estimate the time required, do a sanity check and triage so that today's list is reasonable and doable by a normal human being. Move everything else to the master list.
5. Roughly schedule the day on an hourly basis, including time for breaks and fun. (on paper)
Yay! Thanks for the question, it helped me think this through again.
Jo
Show up. Do your work. Go home.
e ci
Today:
plan dinner
write story
sort through belongings
move boxes to basement
dishes
resume
letters (scary)
lots more to do, but will take it one task at a time.
chatbox is essential
"It's not about perfect results, it is about getting ANY results." - Constance
Recycler CI 5:05am EST
Hi Pro Buddies!
I'm up at about my regular time this morning. However, I'm not getting ready to go to the gym. Around 7am I will find out if my workplace will open at regular time or at 11am (due to snow delay). If at 11, I want to be doing things around here (such as continued painting of a room) instead of hanging out uptown between after the gym and 11am.
At 5am, it's too dark to paint. (I need some natural light in the room). However the rest of the condo needs some straightening. I think I will work in the master bedroom walk-in closet and that area.
Wouldn't it be great if I had another snow day off from work? :D However, I think it will be 11am start time, if not regular time. I'll try to update my CI later.
6:30. No news yet about work start time. I will check back at 6:45 and 7. If haven't heard anything by 7:10, I will call one of my coworkers. Since I"m up, I have been working in the walk-in closet, and carrying in some things from other rooms. I also cooked and ate breakfast. Next: run the dishwasher, putter around + check work website & email.
7am. Oh my gosh, work is going to start on regular time at 8:30 today! I do love my job, but was enjoying a half-day fantasy! ((sigh)) Re-strategizing: get dressed for work. Pack lunch & put things by the door to take to work. Plan for after-work: small bedroom is ready using the paint rollers to paint. After work there should still be enough daylight for me to do the painting. Tonight after painting, I will decide what to do for the rest of the evening. I will wear comfortable clothes to work, to help me feel better about going in.
6:05pm at home. Review of day: Made it to work on time. Overall, worked on projects, kept awareness of new projects coming in, updated assignment list at end of day. Technically I could have worked late, but I needed to do two errands after work.
I had a fantasy of being able to do some painting between 5pm and 6:30pm when I leave for my 12-step meeting; however that turned out to be unrealistic. Tomorrow night I don't have a meeting, so maybe I should aim to paint then.
I can do an Internet project from home for my boss. However, she hasn't gotten it to me yet. I need to check again throughout the evening; then I can do it for her.
Next: I would like to stop by a store on my way to the meeting. OK, I will change clothes, then see if I can clean up a little here before going out the door ;)
9:20pm. OK, I'm back from the meeting. I still don't have the info from my boss, so I guess we will send it in the morning? Serenity Prayer: God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Amen.
Have a great day! :)
Recycler
Recycler
Thank you, gals & guys, for being here! :)