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.
pro's CI - 9:20pm
I'm out of town, but I have things I want to do this evening without fooling around, so I'm posting.
I got messages back from the two clients I wrote to very late. One is okay with it, the other one sent me a very long letter of dissatisfaction. I have a tendency to skim and to answer letters too quickly. I don't want to do that with this. I want to read the letter with care, and respond after reflection. Some of the things that were said hurt my feelings, but the letter was not mean. The criticisms about how I do my job were not only about my lateness.
I was thinking I wanted to reply to one of my other clients tonight, but I feel a little upset and I'm not sure I can do it.
Right now I want to take out my contacts, brush my teeth, and put on my jammies. Then I'll decide what I can do after. Maybe I'll read the letter more carefully, or maybe I'll get into bed with a magazine and read it tomorrow.
blah. I'm done.
I ended up writing back to the client, and that's about all I can take for today. Bedtime.
Probably the best thing
I think that's probably the best thing you could do - if you'd spent more time on it, the task would have got even bigger in your head and been another thing that ended up on your procrastination list. By responding, you've shown that you ~can~ be responsive and make a quick turnaround, and that you ~do~ take the issues seriously.
slider's 4 pm CI
Ta Da:
--got kids up
--got enough sleep (is that a Ta Da? )
--made coffee and had a Red Bull
--took meds
--cuop
--call cpa (DH and I have to go sign a power of attorney so she can straighten out our taxes)
--let baby hognose snake go TODAY
--printed out calendars for chauffeuring discussion while talking to DH
--complete nursing home schedule
X-send faxes to nursing home directors when I finish the schedules )(decided mailing them was good enough)
--copy schedules, stuff and label and postmark envelopes at 11 am Wednesday at nursing home (with a few extra copies to take a pastor's meeting on Thursday, so they can see them already
--call M to cancel Thursday's fun event due to DS band event (got to move it to Monday, actually)
--scheduled wedding bulletin for this evening
--scheduled newsletter article for Friday morning
--had excellent lunch at great restaurant
--picked up DD after school
--reminded DD of chores
To Do:
--pick up DS from band at 4:30
--remind DS of his chores
--check email
----prepare wedding bulletin
----schedule home communions for remainder of month
--discuss and make a plan for after-school chauffering
--discuss chores/allowance plan I devised with DH and with kids
--develop weekly schedule further to include home chores, exercise, and regular fun
--look ahead to other professional responsibilities for the rest of August and nearest ones in September and make a plan
--eat supper
--evening routine
TaDas
--got enough sleep (is that a Ta Da? )
If it was on your list of things to do, or if you've a tendency to put it off, then it's ~definitely~ a TaDa! :)
todayfirst 11:20 AM
Ok, I killed, broiled, and ate the first big frog :P
I'm rewarding myself with a little time off. I feel much better. After lunch, I will email it and get on with the other stuff.
Done:
- Write document #2
Todo:
- Email document #2
- Email article to team
- Test Project X
- mini-break
- Work on big program (in 30 min chunks)
- Type "very rough" draft of document #1
Well done TodayFirst
slider's 10:00 am CI
Ta Da:
--got kids up
--got enough sleep (is that a Ta Da? )
--made coffee and had a Red Bull
--took meds
--cuop
--call cpa (DH and I have to go sign a power of attorney so she can straighten out our taxes)
--let baby hognose snake go TODAY
--printed out calendars for chauffeuring discussion while talking to DH
To Do (from yesterday--every bit of it!):
--complete nursing home schedule
--send faxes to nursing home directors when I finish the schedules
--decide when to schedule other urgent tasks this week:
----don't forget newsletter article & wedding bulletin
----schedule home communions for remainder of month
--discuss and make a plan for after-school chauffering
--copy schedules, stuff and label and postmark envelopes at 11 am Wednesday at nursing home (with a few extra copies to take a pastor's meeting on Thursday, so they can see them already)
--call M to cancel Thursday's fun event
If I finish all this on time today, I am going to eat lunch at my favorite restaurant! Then I'll see what the next batch of tasks needs to be!
--finish prioritizing today's tasks
Good Morning! slider's first CI--9 am
I was bad last night. :( Instead of going to bed, I cruised a little more on the internet, watched Seifeld even though I've seen that episode several times and I don't even like Seinfeld, and then I read a few chapters of Silence of the Lambs (great bedtime reading, huh? Actually, it's kinda dull compared to the visceral experience of the movie--and quite different from the movie, too), so I was up till about 12:30. Then I got up at 8:30 (DH offered to take care of kids after I got them up, so I went back to bed). Still, at least I'm in a good mood and ready to tackle everything.
Ta Da:
--got kids up
--got enough sleep (is that a Ta Da? ;) )
--made coffee and had a Red Bull
--took meds
--cuop
To Do (from yesterday--every bit of it!):
--finish prioritizing today's tasks
--call cpa (DH and I have to go sign a power of attorney so she can straighten out our taxes)
--complete nursing home schedule
--send faxes to nursing home directors when I finish the schedules
--decide when to schedule other urgent tasks this week:
----don't forget newsletter article & wedding bulletin
----schedule home communions for remainder of month
--let baby hognose snake go TODAY (didn't yet due to workers in cemetery and rain)
--discuss and make a plan for after-school chauffering
--finish schedules
--copy schedules, stuff and label and postmark envelopes at 11 am Wednesday at nursing home (with a few extra copies to take a pastor's meeting on Thursday, so they can see them already)
--call M to cancel Thursday's fun event
If I finish all this on time today, I am going to eat lunch at my favorite restaurant! Then I'll see what the next batch of tasks needs to be! The secretary at the nursing home is expecting me at around 11 am--any time between then and noon will do (I have to get into her office before she goes to lunch). That's a soft target, but it will do.
pro's check-in (and check-out)
I got up early, and got dressed and packed right away so I'm about ready to go get my car. I'll be offline the rest of today and tomorrow. Have a good day, everyone!
todayfirst 8:10 AM EST
Ok, my first priority is to get the document that was requested yesterday done. Why is that my first priority when I think it was a dumb idea in the first place? Because it's eating at me and if I get it done quickly, it will be behind me and I can think about other stuff again. :) I think it will take me a while so I'm not really going to make a todo list yet.
Great plan
Good thinking!
Milo 9:30pm
Oh, dear. Has anyone seen some momentum laying about??? :(
Tonight I had plans to do some other work stuff but changed them to talk to DH and do some calculations in order to make a final decision about leaving my job. Gawd, it's a terrifying thought!
TA DA:
- ALL OF morning routine (I even swish'n'swiped and never do on payroll days!)
- got to work on time
- completed jobs B, C & D (actual 10mins for B, 20mins for C & 40mis for D)
- Spent 1/2 an hour on ONE of the 4 projects I'm putting off (actual 40 mins)
- had extra changes to make to job D because the requestor came back TWICE to show me something he'd forgotten to tell me the first time. Another 30 mins (grrr!!)
- spent 45 minutes on job A, will submit it for signoff and spend last 15 mins later today
- spent 20 minutes wasting time searching the web for cheap holidays
- did another job I forgot to put on here (est 20 mins, took 10 mins)
- finished job A altogether (actual 15 mins)
- spent last hour and a half of work goofing off and playing with opportunities in ACT!
- log my time in timesheet (at least I've done stuff today so did't have to make it up entirely }:))
***evening***
- had meeting with DH
- filed EVERYTHING in 'to file' folder (after 3 weeks of telling myself to :P)
- Family room 'room rescue'
- played with DS
BLOWN OFF:
- Spend 1/2 an hour on each of the other 3 projects I'm putting off
- reply email to friend (that's my reward for anticrastination on the projects) (HA! THAT didn't work, did it???!!!!)
- Make a start on project E (another major procrastination job)(30 mins)
- Normal weekly task of menu planning and grocery list (DH can do it)
- 15 minutes cleaning in weekly zone
TO DO:
- Finish work routine (tidy desk, check calendar, pack bags, update ACT!)
- Evening routine (lay out clothes, shine sink, wash face/clean teeth, check calendar)
- go to bed by 10..I'm sleepy...
momentum
hmmmm... I think I had some yesterday but then I lost it. If I find it again, I'll send some your way. :)
Ha ha..!
Thanks. I need it!!!!!!!! :lol:
Momentum!
Hey! I've found it!
P.S. What's 'ACT'?
Milo 2:45pm
Hmm...not much progress since last post.
TA DA:
- ALL OF morning routine (I even swish'n'swiped and never do on payroll days!)
- got to work on time
- completed jobs B, C & D (actual 10mins for B, 20mins for C & 40mis for D)
- Spent 1/2 an hour on ONE of the 4 projects I'm putting off (actual 40 mins)
- had extra changes to make to job D because the requestor came back TWICE to show me something he'd forgotten to tell me the first time. Another 30 mins (grrr!!)
- spent 45 minutes on job A, will submit it for signoff and spend last 15 mins later today
- spent 20 minutes wasting time searching the web for cheap holidays
- did another job I forgot to put on here (est 20 mins, took 10 mins)
TO DO:
- Spend 1/2 an hour on each of the other 3 projects I'm putting off
- finish job A altogether (est 15 mins to go)
- reply email to friend (that's my reward for anticrastination on the projects)
- Make a start on project E (another major procrastination job)(30 mins)
- log my time in timesheet (at least I've done stuff today so don't have to make it up }:))
I only have 2 hours left so will have to drop some of these or spend less time on each. I am going to be good and drop the email. I can do that from home tonight (she's a cyber-friend in the US, she's asleep now anyway ;))
Milo 1pm
Getting there!!!!!
TA DA:
- ALL OF morning routine (I even swish'n'swiped and never do on payroll days!)
- got to work on time
- completed jobs B, C & D (actual 10mins for B, 20mins for C & 40mis for D)
- Spend 1/2 an hour on ONE of the 4 projects I'm putting off (actual 40 mins)
TO DO:
- Spend 1/2 an hour on each of the other 3 projects I'm putting off
- close off job A altogether (est 1 hr)
- reply email to friend (that's my reward for anticrastination on the projects)
- Make a start on project E (another major procrastination job)(30 mins)
Milo 9am
Morning all!
What a great day yesterday! Normy refined her weekly plan, slider addressed getting dressed ;) and pro ate the two biggest, ugliest frogs!!!!!
I started my weekly plan yesterday, too. Will post it tonight as I didn't bring it to work with me.
Am checking in today because my boss told me yesterday she had left me to my own devices lately and is hoping I am doing right by her. So of course I felt guilty about stuff I have been procrastinating on and so will attack them today and what better way to GTD than checking in here!
TA DA:
- ALL OF morning routine (I even swished'n'swiped and never do on payroll days!)
- got to work on time
TO DO:
- Spend 1/2 an hour on each of the 4 projects I'm putting off this morning and then a bit again this afternoon (2hrs morning, 1 hr afternoon)
- close off job A altogether (est 1 hr)
- complete jobs B, C & D (est 15mins for B, 30mins each for C & D)
- reply email to friend (that's my reward for anticrastination on the projects)
- Make a start on project E (another major procrastination job)(30 mins)
Hopefully I can make a dent in this work. DH has decided we might be okay with me only doing one payroll day a week so I will soon be rid of this much hated job! Hooray!
Weekly plan
Normy refined her weekly plan
Refinement seems to be working too :)
pro, can you please close font tag?
Looks like I missed it but for some reason I don't get the 'edit' option on that post so I can't change it.
Thanks :)
Oh, don't worry - I figured it out - it's from the 1pm post, which I CAN edit.
estimating time
Cool that you're estimating and monitoring how long tasks take!! :)
Using email as a reward is a good idea. Today I used a game of Tetris on my phone as a reward for writing to the first overdue client (me overdue, not the client).
Yeah, thought I should..
Going to do it on my weekly plan, too.
Thanks to encouragement from you guys!