Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Wellness Wednesday: A Winner and Preventing Procrastination

And the winner of the lovely scarf is (drum roll, please!) Aleck Featherston! I'm sure his lovely wife will enjoy wearing the scarf!

How did everyone do making your beds last week? I had one extremely busy day, so I was very tempted to skip it. I just told myself that it was only three minutes, and immediately felt more in control afterwards.

This month we're going to focus on continuing to improve our surroundings in ways that will set our minds at rest, help us feel more organized, and bring more peace into our lives.

While we continue making our beds, we're going to attempt one project this week (of course, you're welcome to do more!).

Think about your house. What is the one thing you've avoided doing for months, or possibly years? This doesn't have to be something major, like a remodeling project. It could be a drawer that hasn't been cleaned out in a while. Or an overlooked closet. Maybe it's patching nail holes, or going through your closet to throw away clothing you haven't worn in a while. It could be a phone call to take care of a challenging personal situation.This task doesn't have to be something that takes a week, or even an entire day. It just needs to be a project you've procrastinated.

Why do we procrastinate? I know I tend to put off things that make a big mess or are difficult or unpleasant. When I'm stalling, I tell myself I don't have time now, but will be able to tackle it later. Then the chore becomes bigger and bigger in my mind until I start to think it will take too much mental and/or physical energy to get it done. So, I put it off more.

What's the big deal? Not only do you have things left undone, but every time you see the results of letting them go, you feel badly about yourself. It's a failure reminder. It reinforces all your negative self-talk.

I cleaned out a cluttered cabinet at work. It cleared my head, made me feel much less stressed, and gave me back some control. Doing the actual organizing wasn't nearly as unpleasant as I thought it would be, and it took much less time than I had predicted. I bet it will be the same for you!

So, get after that job this week. If it's huge, like a messy closet, just do one shelf. Then, look at your completed task every day. Pat yourself on the back and remember how amazing you are. It will encourage you to do more, and your self-esteem will shoot up!

Leave a comment to share how the bed making went and what your project is for this week for a chance to win a $20 Amazon gift card.

3 comments:

  1. Well- it's a nice blog post, tho it would take much more than one project for me. With 4 high maintenance kids, and one more that I have to make sure not to leave out 'cause she's easy- something has to drop off the bottom of the list just for survival and it's usually chores. Now as they are getting older and better able to do homework on their own sometimes, etc. I have begun the process of choosing one spot a day to clean all the way to the floor, even if it's tiny. This week was my stove- you can be very proud of me. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Rachel Pilgrim here. I tend to procrastinate anything that involves making a decision about paper. I'm definitely a piler, not a filer. So I've put off filing or tossing papers for a long time. That is my goal for January - to clean up the office and get everything in order.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I like the one spot a day idea--and I hope you're patting yourself on the back every time you see your stove! Rachel, I have a big pile myself... I do the same thing! Maybe we can both conquer them!

    ReplyDelete