Today’s word is PROCRASTINATION
Dictionary.com defines procrastination as the act or habit of procrastinating, or putting off or delaying, especially something requiring immediate attention
I really, really hate when a definition uses the word, don’t you? Still the meaning is very clear — putting off something.
Is procrastination deliberate or subconscious?
Steven Pressfield, author of The War of Art calls procrastination a form of resistance. He believes creative types face lots of resistance and offers inspiration to overcome that resistance. If you don’t own a copy of Pressfield’s book you should, it’s gotten me over more than one bumpy writing slowdown. Btw, I don’t get any kickback.
I’m not sure what to call procrastination, but I know it’s a disease shared by too many writers, myself included. And, procrastination is a clever enemy.
Half the time, Mr. P (aka procrastination) disguises himself as very worthy endeavors like
A writer’s meeting to get a writer fix
A computer game to “clear your head”
A movie for “research”
Social media is one of Mr. P’s favorite tactics. Who among us doesn’t find Twitter or FB or web surfing sucking precious time from our day?
My favorite delay is a power nap to refresh my brain’s hard drive. Naps may work, but am I really just giving in to procrastination’s subtle ways when fifteen minutes slides into an hour or two?
Writing is hard work. A solitary work. Those two facts alone stall too many of us and allow Mr. P’s power to succeed.
“Procrastination is one of the most common and deadliest of diseases and its toll on success and happiness is heavy.” ~Wayne Dyer
So how do we cure the culprit that steals our words from the page?
Ali Luke in her blog How to Stop Procrastinating and Start Writing suggests four steps.
Great hints are offered on How to Stop Procrastinating
For me, and maybe other writers, I shoo Mr. P away by putting my butt in the chair and W-R-I-T-I-N-G every day whether I feel like it or not, whether what I write is worthy of a Hemingway or not. It works for me. What works for you?
As part of One Word Wednesday, I want to play a game I used when teaching spelling—writing a sentence with the word. Leave your sentence in a comment. No grading involved just for fun.
Dictionary.com suggests: She was smart, but her constant procrastination led her to be late with almost every assignment.
How would you use PROCRASTINATION in a sentence?
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You had me with the Procrastination picture (which you will find later). That said it all and I only accidentally scrolled down to find you wrote something. Very good post.
Thanks, Cora. I thought the picture was perfect too.
[…] ONE WORD: And finally, a new blogger, Judy the Morgan, had me laughing out loud with the picture that accompan… […]
Thanks for including me in your Mash Up. I’m glad you liked the picture.
that was supposed to be tackle…lol
Interesting I read tackle. Shows you what a poor copyeditor I’d make. Thanks for stopping by. Come again.
I keep meaning to tackly my tendencies towards procrastination, but I just haven’t gotten around to it yet. Great post, Judythe!
I should be finishing a proposal, but instead I’m PROCRASTINATING by reading blogs…
(How was that, LOL!)
Perfect! Now get back to writing. Thanks for stopping by.
What a great post! I love the idea you have for Wednesdays. Sounds like a fun thing to do each week. I’m going to check out that book too – I definitely could use a little help in this department. Did I mention I LOVE porches? I could sit there and procrastinate with you all day :)
Thanks for stopping by. I’m looking forward the Wednesday words.
Great first post. I love Pressfield’s War of Art, too. And I don’t think part three of it is weird, unlike some people.
Procrastination hits me through my to-do list. New writing project? Ha! I’m on it…just as soon as I re-pot the houseplants, clean out closets, rearrange the garage… Yeah, writing is great. It really helps me catch up with things.
The cure? (a) Deadlines and (b) Horrible things left on the to-do list (I’d much rather write than tackle them).
See I’m the opposite with the to-do list I never mind putting it aside. To-lists are like laundry…you never finish. Thanks for stopping by. Come again will sit and chat. There’s lots of room on the porch swing.
Great post! Love the opening pic. Still laughing! Like the others here I am in an endless war with Procrastination. If I let me guard down at all he makes crazy advances into my territory. I’m working on a new battle strategy now, but I think the best chance I have of winning is baby steps. Thanks for the insight!
You’re welcome D.B. Baby steps is a good plan. Baby steps get you there. Stop by again. We’ve plenty of space on the porch swing.
Judythe,
Great blog. I intend to do something about my terrible procrastination.
Later.
I’ll get around to it.
Jody
Waiting until the last minute to get this blog going I can completely understand about getting around to it. Thanks for stopping by. There’s always a rocker on the porch by me.
Great start to your blogging, Judythe! I can get my butt into the chair, but its amazing how many things I can find on the screen to distract me from the project at hand. I always use the excuse that I work better under pressure, but its really just procrastination rearing its ugly head.
Thanks for stopping by. There are lots and lots of distractions, aren’t there? I fight the battle myself, but am determined that WRITING wins! I set deadlines for me and I’m a mean boss. LOL
Yep we learn as we get older to “Wait and see,” don’t we? Thanks for the input, Donald. I’m loving your WANA newspaper.
Love the idea of one word Wednesday. Lots of scope in that!
I fight a daily battle with procrastination, and (as we Aussies say) ‘bum on seat’ is the best solution for me. But currently I’m struggling with fitting everything in. If you set yourself a weekly blog target of 3 per week, is it procrastination if this impinges on your wip?
Ellen, you’ve zeroed in on the conundrum surrounding my writer’s procrastination. I prefer to think that my blogging refreshes my creative juices for my WIP. But once I let a day go by without putting words on the page, I HAVE to admit to Pressfield’s resistance factor and get the butt back into the chair with the keys over the computer to work on my WIP!
Haha that’s four sentences using ‘procrastination’!!
When you reach my age, I have developed procrastination into an art. Even when I was working I would look at my inbox full of potential problems, wave my hands and say the magic words “A problem is not a problem until someone else knows it’s a problem”. In most cases these problems did not occur. But look out if they did. LOL
Procrastination is not my friend, but you are, Judythe! Loved your post from the front porch. Love the look and feel of your blog. Very much YOU. I bought the book, too. You know I love my research books and this comes at a time when I need to give myself a jump start. Thank you for the recommendation.
Ah, Kat, you are a good friend. Pressfield’s book is like a daily devotional read. You don’t have to read it all at once. That’s another thing I like about it! Thanks for stopping by. There’s always a place on the porch swing.
Great sentence. If I were grading, you’d get an A+ LOL You nailed the word and the blog concept. Go you.
BIC HOK the words are on the wall above my computer. I’m winning the battle, I think. Getting on this blogging has been a major issue. Millions of reasons why I can’t. Need to get in my head BIC HOK for writing blogs too!
Thanks for your input.
Procrastination has been a HUGE problem with my writing. I’m learning though to tell my brain about the consequences of constant procrastination. The folks at Writing Excuses have an acronym for fighting procrastination: BIC HOK– butt in chair, hands on keyboard. Doesn’t matter if I have no ideas. Doesn’t matter if I feel like I’m terrible. BIC HOK.
Here’s how I use it in my sentence: I kicked procrastination in the head!