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.
Monday, 19 December 2011
Monday, 19 December 2011
Happy Monday!!!
Welcome to Recovery!
Reach for the stars and have a golden day!
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fudoshin: checkin: 1:39am
Please do not leave advice or feedback. Thank you. Prayers welcome.
I would just like to report that I followed through with doing the thirty minutes thing, and it helped me to finish my take-home final. I am very impressed with myself. I feel totally different, like I can really take on the world, even though I know I have to be realistic. I just want to publicly thank my Higher Power and all of you for making this program be what it is and what it means to me.
kromer 2 CI
OK, I'm really stressed out trying to get everything done before I leave at 3:30:
*Email about poinsettias
*Pick up debit card
*Check on expts
*Print appers and tidy up a little bit
katia 12.19
Movingalong, what an inspiring thread starter!
k so I REALLY have to get some of my lab report and optics project done today. I have been slacking because I am SO READY for Christmas break!!!
Just wanted to post that so I can get the ball rolling, I'll break it down later.
re: 4change ending work on time
i hear that contradiction between spending the right time on work vs ending work on time, if you (i) have procrastinated the start. That's a tuf one. My instinct, or should i say my instinct after having been working on this here for years is that the ending on time is the wiser choice, altho i dont think i can justify that with arguments.
I have a similar thing with going to bed. I am forever debating staying up to finish things or going to bed. There it's easier for me because the staying directly affects how much sleep. And even tho i hate to admit it, it know it is true, being well rested makes me more productive. It just doesnt seem at all that way at midnight when i'm trying to get something done at work. I have so hard a time seeing the long term. (that's like of the "signs of a compulsive procrastinator" : "10. We are short-term thinkers, focusing on short-term pleasure while ignoring long-term well-being." http://procrastinators-anonymous.org/files/PA_Signs.html)
Anyway, good luck recovering today!
fall down seven times, get up eight - japanese proverb
Thanks, clement
Yes, this is a struggle. I have repeatedly made the choice of throwing more time at my work to compensate for time lost procrastinating. Unfortunately, there isn't an endless supply of time, and before i know it, my behavior begins to impact negatively on the next day, then the next week, then the next month, and so on. Thanks for the positive words.
Re starting and ending on time
Thanks clement and 4change, I appreciated hearing your thoughts on this as it's something I'm often dealing with (no surprises there!). I think that sometimes if I start late it's ok for me to work an extra hour or so into the evening (and preferably early evening before dinner) but that I am just kidding myself if I think I will make up time effectively later in the evening. Before I know it I'm ending up exhausted or stressed, then staying up late to have some relaxation time, then the whole cycle starts again.
So I agree, unless it is a deadline with severe consequences for missing, I am better off to finish at a reasonable hour, have some relaxation at a reasonable hour and get to bed before 11 pm so I am able to get up early and not feel too tired to work properly. That's the theory anyway.
Your comments about rescheduling were so helpful to me too, clement. I really relate and now I can see it's possible to forgive/accept myself, make a new schedule and move on, instead of feeling bad that I haven't finished my list. I think some of my daily lists have been unrealistic and too unachievable, anyway.
I am so grateful that we have this website.
re: rescheduling
thanks findingaway.
yes, rescheduling has helped me. I look at my schedule, see that i'm behind, usually by hours. Sometimes i had on my schedule a 5 min task and it's done but it's 2 hours later. The urge / reflex to sulk it so strong i can barely contain it.
But i keep trying to tell myself, just make a new schedule and move on.
One phrase that caught on here a while back was: "make the best catch-up plan you can." that encourages me.
One good thing is that once i've overcome the first wave of guilt, and i start making my new schedule, it does motivate me to get things done. That part of my brain i think is working normally.
fall down seven times, get up eight - japanese proverb
Back at work too soon
Working on weekends helps me to catch up, but the tradeoff is lack of real renewal time, so I start the week without much energy. Yesterday's goals:
Goal 1: Start as soon as I post this. Up to 30 minutes per case, starting with the most important. Did this pretty effectively. Felt pretty good about it.
Goal 2: Work until 7:30 PM, then go home, as planned. Didn't put in 4 hours? Tough. Not surprisingly, this was hard to stick to. Got working on one of my big overdue projects working my way through a big stack of paper and earlier notes, abstracting a pretty complicated history. I just wasn't willing to let it go at 7:30...or 8:30. When it got to be 9:30, I wasn't to the end, and I just didn't have it any more. I finally called it quits.
Once again, I left much later than I intended, and set the usual dominoes in motion: left late >> ate dinner late >> got home late >> went to bed late >> had a hard time getting up today >> still feeling tired to start the week >> hard to get started today. Repeating the same mistake and getting the same result. At least I am consistent?
In truth, I think that it isn't entirely procrastination per se, but certainly many of the factors that I feel contribute to my procrastination - anxiety, guilt, fear of failure, fear of embarrassment, obsessiveness - are also at work. Well, God has granted me another day, so it's a chance to try again. I have set today's goals below, with "key" ones in green. These are linchpin behavior modifications I want to work on.
Goal 1: Start promptly after posting this without internet procrastination and review cases (up to 30 minutes per case, then move on) until 1:30 PM!!
Goal 2: Lunch for 30 minutes
Goal 3: Segue back into work promptly after lunch without internet procrastination!!
Goal 4: Continue to work on cases until 6 PM.
Goal 5: Dinner for 30 minutes.
Goal 6: Segue back into work promptly and work on cases until 7:30 to 8 PM.
Goal 7: Leave by or at 8 PM!!
Goal 8: Personal time until 10 PM.
Goal 9: Go to bed between 10 and 10:30 PM!!
It's 10:23, and I am signing off and starting *now*. Back to report.
No, seriously, there were a couple typos I "had" to fix. Okay, it's 10:25 and I am starting *now*.
clement ci
8:59am :
back to the grind.
step 1: make schedule
9:03am:
i am so funny. i had a mini anxiety attack as i went to make my schedule. But once i got into it, it was kinda fun. i'm so weird.
thanks for being weird with me
9:12am:
ok the fun is over. now it's time to go to the club and workout and i am feeling a lot of resistance, again. i think i can use "break it down" so i'll see how that goes.
9:15am:
ok i read thru chat too. i guess there's nothing left to procrastinate on. ;) i guess i'll have to start breaking it down. the first step or 2 do not give me resistance; the whole thing does. So i might as well get the first 2 steps done.
1:35pm:
did next 2 things on my schedule. now i want to skip one, but i shouldnt. god give me strength.
4:41pm:
i have been working. have i got anything done? yes i made progress, but am not finished. And another job landed on my lap. I should do if quick, and it's ok to put it off if not. I have to be a big boy here and do the right thing. dont sluff it off, dont binge on it. choose wisely and do steadily.
fall down seven times, get up eight - japanese proverb
Journey 8:45
Happy Monday! I am taking a vacation day today, using up the vacation I could not take in September. So far today I have done . . .nothing! Time to get started. I will make my todo list for today and come back here and post it.
Update 9 am TDL
Set out of office messageDo agenda for for noon meeting and send to my backupexercise for 1 hourwrap all presents startedbathe giant stinky dogsclean big bathroom after bathing giant stinky dogsstraighten guest bathroomfeed birdsw/ck/sg/pr/w/deprepare for tomorrow starteddinner is in the ovendishes startedlaundry startedBe confident. Stay focused. One thing at a time.
Max Barraclough
Mind, Body, Spirit
- Meditate for 20 minutes
- PAI, PA before after, MMB
- Stretch, 75 pushups, 10 pistols, 0 pullups
- 1 pitcher of protein shake, vitamins, pill
- Brush AM, PM
Reliable/In touch/Communicative
Respond to all e-mails within 12 hours
Read:
WSJ
Tasks:
Get new classes
Nails fing/toe
Clear GM contacts, GM, LI, FB
Credit score?
Add to R's matrix
Laundry
40 days transactions
Guest spreadsheet
Resolicit guests
Gifts spreadsheet
Talk to N re gifts
Buy present for NS
Write DK
Streaks:
Morning routine - 0 (0)
Meditate – 10 (10)
PAI – 24 (24), MMB – 15 (15), PA - 19 (19) after 0 (1)
Stretch - 19 (19), Pull-ups - 0 (4), pushups - 12 (12), pistols 12 (12)
Shake - 9 (9), vitamins - 18 (18), pills 0 (12)
Brush AM/PM - 8 (9)
Read: WSJ 0 (0)
Respond to all in 12 hours: 0 (0)
My Day Today
I want to thank my Higher Power for this program, this website, the telephone and online meetings, and my life.
I want to thank movingalong for starting this trend.
Things I will do today
1. Go to the 7 a.m. telephone DA meeting2. Go to the 8:30 a.m. telephone PA meeting3. Go to the 9:45 a.m. telephone CLA meeting4. Take shower5. Get dressed6. Eat brunch7. Call the office in my apartment building8. Go to the office in my apartment building9. Pick up some stuff off the floor10. Go to the 1 p.m. telephone CLA meeting11. Go to the pharmacy and get my medicine12. Go to the bus station and get my monthly pass13. Go to work at 5:30 p.m.14. Read the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous
15. Prayer and meditation morningand evening16. Finish my Third Step in DA
17. Finish my Third Step in NA
18. Do a question in the Fourth Step in NA
19. Eat dinner20. Wash dishes
Thanks for letting me share