All About Women | Women

When we look at the unrealistic fears in our lives, one of the major indicators is procrastination. Wikipedia defines procrastination as “a behavior which is characterized by the deferment of actions or tasks to a later time.”

At a workshop I attended sometime back, the majority of the participants cited procrastination as the main cause of not beginning a task, a dream or a desire. They knew exactly what to do, but the problem came in the actual doing. I must admit to having this particular syndrome many times in my life. It became so detrimental to my life that I had to discover what was going on. Then came the awareness. I looked at the things I did quite easily without delay. What was the difference?

It wasn’t passion. I am passionate about writing, yet for a long time I would put off writing these blog posts.

I looked at the reasons why I had to do the thing that I procrastinated on. Was it something that I had to or should do, or something that I wanted to do? I did not have to write these blog posts; but I definitely wanted to. It took a shift in mindset, then the means to blog daily came so easily and effortlessly.

If procrastination is plaguing you, look at the reasons why you are doing the thing you keep putting off. Is it because you want to or because you think you should do it? Remember, stop “shoulding” over yourself. And if it is a task that you must do to move to another level, then reframe why you are doing it. Say to yourself, “I get to do _____, which will move me closer to ______!”

One of the things that came up at our May Becoming a Woman of Purpose meetup was the thief of perfectionism. Why do I call it a thief? Well, simply because it steals from you. It steals your joy, your passion, your creativity, your inner child, and the list can go on. All these elements lead to living life on purpose.

Defining the term perfectionism, I quote our trusty Wikipedia: The persistence of will in obtaining the optimal present and future quality of spiritual, mental, physical, and material being.

Whew! What a mouthful! Okay, that means I am obsessed with producing the best outcome in all I do. And sometimes even the best is not good enough! Perfectionism is about being in control and not trusting in the process or the Divine.

My response to perfectionism is to take the action and let go of the result. This is not going to happen overnight -- just as cultivating the habit of perfectionism did not happen overnight. It takes time and re-conditioning. But you are a woman of purpose, so you are worth the time and effort. You devote your time and energy to other things, why not devote some of that to yourself, especially if you want back your joy, your peace, your passion, and your creativity.

Don't try to break an existing habit; but replace it with a new healthy habit. Remember, it's about which wolf you are willing to keep feeding. When you stop feeding a habit, like anything, it will die. So stop feeding the habit of perfectionism and watch it starve to death!

Until next time, here's to healthy wolves,
Coach Carolyn