Flagellation (and rant) Over --- Time for Action

I'm feeling better today. More my regular self today. And I've decided to give a common anti-procrastination trick a try. I've read in several self-growth places (books, magazine articles, websites and such) that you can begin a habit small and build from there. One source said you can start with just two minutes. That's all, just two minutes a day on a habit you want to develop. The key is to stick to it and do it every single day, just for two minutes. Another popular website says 15 minutes. If you hate doing something or at least keep putting it off, set your timer for 15 minutes and do that thing for 15 minutes every day until you have caught up on that chore. Eventually you do finish that "thing", just 15 minutes at a time.

I've always kind of just said, "Yeah, yeah" to this little trick, but I'm starting to see the value of tackling a tiny chunk of whatever Mt. Everest has me frozen into inactivity (this is a common occurrence with me). I may not be a world champion procrastinator, but with a few particular chores I can hang with the best of 'em. I actually procrastinate doing some of the things I profess to love doing, out of some kind of fear (failure? success? Who knows....who cares). The point is I fiercely want to be productive. I want to feel successful in my own life. I don't ask for that much. I don't care about being famous or rich (although having people see my art or read my novels and enjoy them would be very gratifying, even on a small scale). I just want to be productive and creative, enjoy serving my family, be more satisfied with myself, feel like I'm growing in the directions I choose.

So, with that in mind, part of this year's goals is about growing in focus and self control....big issues with me. Yesterday, I set the timer for 15 minutes 3 times to get a little bit done on the three things I really want to accomplish in my home on a daily basis: cleaning the kitchen, doing laundry, and basic straightening (2 minutes just doesn't seem like enough to feel like anything is accomplished). And I was able to get some of each done. Not caught up, but some work on each. I will do this every day for a week, and let you know how it's going.