Romans 12:10-12 says: "Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;"
Our quote for today is from Jim Rohn. He said: "Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 2 of Step 8: "Use the Reinforcement Principle".
Q: Some people would argue that it's demeaning to "bribe" yourself to do something that you know you should do anyway. Shouldn't the satisfaction of a job well-done be reward enough?
It often is. For many people the knowledge that they will earn self-satisfaction is sufficient motivation to get them to perform a distasteful task at the appropriate time. Such people have learned to utilize the most important reinforcer of all and are to be commended—if everyone were like them there would be no such thing as procrastination, a book like this one would never be written, and it would be a much different world. But many people aren't like that; they doubt they can do the job satisfactorily, or they are immobilized by anticipation of discomfort, or by shyness, or by fear of success, or by one of the other inhibitors we've talked about, so they postpone action. Such people may find it's necessary to sweeten the pot by providing some additional rewards.
This can hardly be referred to as bribery, because that word implies something improper. After all, what's wrong with being rewarded? Welders and teachers and physicians do their work partly because of the satisfaction they get from doing it—but they usually don't continue very long unless that intrinsic reward is supplemented by some additional reinforcement, such as a paycheck, recognition, or benefits.
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Psalm 90:17 says: "And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it."
Our quote for today is from Samuel Butler. He said: "If we attend continually and promptly to the little that we can do, we shall ere long be surprised to find how little remains that we cannot do."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 1 of Step 8: "Use the Reinforcement Principle".
Q: You have emphasized the power of self-discipline. But how do you make sure that when you discipline yourself to do something it isn't just a one-time thing? In other words, how do you build single actions into habit patterns, so that procrastination is less likely in the future?
You do it by using the principle of reinforcement.
Behavioral scientists have demonstrated that whenever a behavior occurs, the likelihood of it occurring again is strongly influenced by whatever happens immediately afterward. If the subsequent event is pleasant, the brain links the two occurrences together. Even if the person is unaware of the linkage, the behavior is more likely to be repeated. The process is seen throughout the animal kingdom: it is built-in mechanism that makes possible what psychologists call associative learning.
So if you want a particular action to be repeated, follow it immediately with a suitable reinforcer, some kind of reward that will have a positive effect. The reinforcer may be provided by someone else—as, for example, in the case of a football coach who gives a player a pat on the back after he has made an exceptional effort—or you can provide it for yourself, as when you give yourself some kind of reward for performing an unpleasant task you were tempted to postpone.
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Ecclesiastes 2:24 says: "There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God."
Our quote for today is from Samuel Butler. He said: "If we attend continually and promptly to the little that we can do, we shall ere long be surprised to find how little remains that we cannot do."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 3 of Step 7: "Establish an Action Environment".
Having the necessary tools and materials close at hand and ready for action minimizes procrastination. For most tasks, gathering the necessary tools and materials is the vital first step. Nothing happens until you have the resources close at hand.
Having everything organized. In a workshop, that may mean having a neat and orderly workbench with all tools in their allotted spaces and a clear space for the new project. In an office, a tidy desk, free of any extraneous materials, is generally an invitation to concentrate. Everyone has personal preferences regarding the layout of their workspace. For some, untidiness is reassuring and soothing. For others, a cluttered work environment leads to disorganized thinking.
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Acts 20:35 says: "I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive."
Our quote for today is from Jack Canfield. He said: "You don't have to get it perfect, you just have to get it going. Babies don't walk the first time they try, but eventually they get it right."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 4 of Step 6: "Get Tough With Yourself".
Q: Do psychologists recommend “flexing” the will regularly?
Indeed they do. One who emphasized this concept many years ago was William James, who put it this way: “Keep alive in yourself the faculty of making efforts by means of little useless exercises every day, that is to say, be systematically heroic every day in little unnecessary things; do something every other day, for the sole and simple reason that it is difficult and you would prefer not to do it, so that when the cruel hour of danger strikes, you will not be unnerved or unprepared. A self-discipline of this kind is similar to the insurance that one pays on one’s house and on one’s possessions. To pay the premium is not pleasant and possibly may never serve us, but should it happen that our house were burnt, the payment will save us from ruin.”
More recently, other psychologists, such as Roberto Assagioli and Boyd Barrett have urged this approach – the daily performance of seemingly useless acts for the sole purpose of strengthening the will. “Gymnastics of the will,” they have called it.
Q: But it seems a shame to select something that is “useless” when there are so many useful tasks to be done!
True. And I am inclined to disagree with James, Assagioli, and Barrett on this point. Instead of performing some useless act just for the sake of exercising the will, I think it makes more sense to select a useful task one has been putting off, so as to get some benefit from the exercise beyond the mere training of the will.
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Ephesians 5:15-16 says: "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil."
Our quote for today is from Vishwas Chavan. He said: "If every citizen can get rid of the indiscipline syndrome, we have immense potential to build more productive, conflict-free, harmonious and peaceful communities, societies, cities, nations and world."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 3 of Step 6: "Get Tough With Yourself".
Q: You recommend doing difficult things not just for the intrinsic benefit involved, but because they provide practice in self-discipline?
Correct. Each time you perform a difficult act -- or resist a temptation -- you make it easier to do so in the future. In the words of Hamlet,
Refrain tonight,
And that shall lend a kind of easiness
To the next abstinence; the next more easy;
For use can almost change the stamp of nature…
Q: So you would compare willpower to a muscle, which grows either stronger or weaker, depending upon whether or not it’s used?
Yes. The human mind, like the human body has an incredible ability to adjust to the demands made on it, and when the demands are steady, regular, and consistent, the result is growth, power, and greater ease of performance. In exercising your will you establish a mental “groove” -- a habit pattern -- that is deepened with each repetition, but which will gradually fade with lack of use.
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Ecclesiastes 2:24 says: "There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God."
Our quote for today is from Roy Bennett. He said: "Don't let procrastination take over your life. Be brave and take risks. Your life is happening right now."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 2 of Step 6: "Get Tough With Yourself".
Q: All of the advice you're giving out presupposes that the person involved has enough willpower to carry out your suggestions. But, unfortunately, willpower is often in short supply – especially for the typical procrastinator. How can one cope with a lack of willpower?
You have to learn to be tough with yourself.
Q: That's easily said, but it isn't really very helpful. A person who knows how to be “tough” with himself probably doesn't lack willpower, and doesn't procrastinate. What's the answer for the millions who don't have whatever it takes to exercise self-discipline?
There's no such person. We all have the option of using self-discipline if we choose to. We are born with a resiliency, a toughness that can enable us to withstand privation, pain, discomfort, and all the other “natural shocks that the flesh is heir to,” but in our modern world we have become so accustomed to the easy life that this inner strength is seldom exercised on a day-to-day basis. However, it's still there, dormant, awaiting the circumstances that will call it forth. And when that happens – when some crisis requires a seemingly superhuman display of pluck – we often amaze both ourselves and others with our ability to prevail over adversity.
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Proverbs 18:9 says: "He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster."
Our quote for today is from Philip Stanhope. He said: "Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness, no laziness, no procrastination: never put off till tomorrow what you can do today."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 1 of Step 6: "Get Tough With Yourself".
Many people consider themselves to have no willpower or ability to overcome procrastination. In making this assumption, they sell themselves short. When a crisis strikes, most people have vast reserves of an ability to overcome adversity.
Most achievers are simply ordinary people who to put forth extraordinary effort without the urging of another person. They have developed exceptional willpower by practice and effort until they reach the point at which they can call for an exceptional effort on a regular basis. Then and only then are they in a situation to achieve something very challenging.
Humans grow strong and robust by adjusting to larger and larger demands. This is as true in the emotional and mental fields as it is in any physical endeavour. Therefore, by regularly taking an unpleasant task and accomplishing it, you are laying a stronger and more powerful foundation for achieving other more difficult tasks further in the future.
One particularly useful habit is decisiveness. When you insist on decisiveness and demand it of yourself, you are much more likely to be sleeping on your accomplishments rather than on your problems.
Proverbs 22:29 says: "Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men."
Our quote for today is from Babe Ruth. He said: "It's hard to beat a person who never gives up."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 7 of Step 5: "Raise Your Energy Level."
Today, we will conclude our look at some physical and psychological factors that can affect our desire to work.
Edwin Bliss writes:
If you are one of the countless millions of people whose procrastination problems are caused -- or intensified -- by chronic fatigue, then doing something about this infirmity should be your top priority project.
Don't arbitrarily rule out medical reasons -- that's a job for a physician. How long has it been since your last checkup? Have you discussed your chronic fatigue with your doctor? Remember, it may be symptomatic of a number of ailments, so be sure to mention it. And if you're overdue for a checkup, can you think of a better time than this moment to make an appointment?
Once you've eliminated the possibility of conditions requiring medical treatment, you've placed yourself in the much larger group of people whose fatigue problems are their own fault, a result of some type of self-indulgence. Since what's at stake here is much more than just the procrastination habit -- it's your health, your energy, your longevity, your zest for living that we're talking about -- resolve to begin immediately to do those commonsense things you know very well you should do.
While you're in the mood, seal your good intentions by writing down what steps you intend to take. Then celebrate your decision by taking a good brisk walk, or by getting some other appropriate exercise, signaling the beginning of a new routine.
Now!
Psalm 37:5 says: "Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass."
Our quote for today is from David Allen. He said: "Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 6 of Step 5: "Raise Your Energy Level."
We have discussed exercise, relaxation, proper diet, and posture as ways of increasing our energy levels to ward off procrastination. Our attitudes and emotions also affect our energy level. Let’s talk about how to handle these psychological factors.
Edwin Bliss writes:
You can make yourself tired just by dreading some frustrating or tedious task. This happens especially when you habitually turn your thoughts inward -- when you are pre-occupied with how you will feel while doing the task, with your aches and pains and discomforts -- instead of focusing your attention on the task itself.
This pseudo-fatigue cannot be cured by mollycoddling yourself and postponing the job: it is cured by action. Getting involved in the job often takes your mind off your "fatigue," and your energy problem solves itself.
We all know that external events often will cause fatigue suddenly to vanish. Perhaps you are tired and looking forward to a quiet evening at home, when the phone rings and you learn that some unexpected guests are on their way to visit you. As you scurry to tidy up and get yourself presentable the tiredness is forgotten.
The fact that fatigue can be banished instantly by such emotions as excitement, curiosity, fear, anger, and anticipation demonstrates that, to a considerable degree, it is an ephemeral, controllable condition. It fluctuates not just according to how much we have used our muscles, or according to the time of day or night, but according to our attitudes, our thoughts, our interests. And this means that we can override it -- temporarily, at least -- by a pure act of will.
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John 5:15-17 says: "The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole. And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day. But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work."
Our quote for today is from Michael Landon Jr. He said: "Somebody should tell us, right at the start of our lives, that we are dying. Then we might live life to the limit, every minute of every day. Do it! I say. Whatever you want to do, do it now! There are only so many tomorrows."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 5 of Step 5: "Raise Your Energy Level."
We have discussed exercise, relaxation, and proper diet as ways of increasing our energy levels to ward off procrastination. Doing drugs is another activity that can sap our energy, and that is what we will talk about today.
Edwin Bliss writes:
Marijuana is another substance that promotes procrastination. The only reason this aspect of pot isn't mentioned more often, I suspect, is that it's much harder to measure procrastination than it is to measure cell damage, testosterone levels, memory loss, immune system impairment, and respiratory ailments.
But consider one undisputed fact: even people who condone occasional use of marijuana admit that its use by children and teenagers lowers academic performance. And a major reason for that decline in grades, obviously, is that the students become apathetic and procrastinate on homework and on studying.
Dr. Harold Voth of the Menninger Foundation's School of Psychiatry, and chief of staff of the Topeka, CA, Medical Center, has studied psychotherapy of marijuana use for eight years. Among the characteristics he lists as being related to pot personality are diminished willpower, the amotivational -- or dropout -- syndrome, lessened concentration, shortened attention span, diminished ability to deal with abstract or complex problems, emotional flatness, impaired judgment, and lowered tolerance for frustration. Every one of those factors quite obviously is associated with procrastination.
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Psalm 128:2 says: "For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee."
Our quote for today is from Pablo Picasso. He said: "Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 4 of Step 5: "Raise Your Energy Level."
We've discussed exercise and relaxation as methods of fighting procrastination. The third physical aspect that we will deal with is diet. It's a big subject, one we won't go into in depth, but suffice it to say that so far as fatigue is concerned one big culprit is sugar. Most of us eat many times as much sugar as we should.
Lots of people think sugar is supposed to produce energy, but it just isn't true at least not in the way they think. Every week the average American eats more than two pounds of refined sugar, much of it hidden as an ingredient in various manufactured foods (one popular brand of ketchup is 29% sugar!) If eating refined sugar really produced energy, we would be a nation of live wires and lethargy would be unknown.
It is true that low blood sugar means less energy, but the proper way to maintain the right amount of sugar (glucose) in your blood is through a balanced diet. When you zap your system with refined sugar (sucrose) you trigger the release by the pancreas of large amounts of insulin to counteract the sugar shock, and this insulin overcompensates, resulting in a much lower bloodsugar level than you originally had. And one result of this process is fatigue. It sounds complicated, but that's the way it works. (There are other undesired effects of too much sugar, including weight gain and dental cavities, but this isn't the place to go into that.)
Of course, I'm not saying that procrastination is a result of eating too much sugar. What I am saying is that one result of bad dietary practices, such as eating too much sugar, is fatigue. If you are vacillating about whether to go ahead and get a job done or whether to put it off, you will more frequently choose to put it off if you feel pooped. So poor diet doesn't "cause" procrastination, but it may tip the scales. And if bad diet becomes habitual, causing chronic fatigue, it can tip those scales dozens of times a day on matters that don't seem to be related to health in any way whatsoever.
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Acts 20:35 says: "I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive."
Our quote for today is from Dale Carnegie. He said: "The best possible way to prepare for tomorrow is to concentrate with all your intelligence, all your enthusiasm, on doing today's work superbly today. That is the only possible way you can prepare for the future."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 3 of Step 5: “Raise Your Energy Level" by "Doing It Now: A Twelve Step Program for Curing Procrastination and Achieving Your Goals" by Edwin C. Bliss.
We have already talked about exercise being one of three factors that we can use in combating fatigue. Relaxation is the second factor.
Just giving lip service to the value of relaxation which we all do isn't enough. And it's not enough, either, to plop down in front of the television set for an hour or two every evening with a beer in one hand and a bowl of potato chips in the other. That may be entertainment, it may even be recreation, of sorts but relaxation it isn't!
Dr. Herbert Benson, a psychiatrist on the staff of Harvard, has made extensive studies on what he calls the "relaxation response," which is involved in transcendental meditation, Zen, yoga, and various other relaxation techniques. He found that these relaxation-producing regimens all have quantifiable physiological effects and that they have four things in common: a quiet environment, a mental device (such as a sound or word or "mantra"), a passive attitude, and a comfortable position to reduce muscular effort to a minimum.
To obtain the relaxation response, sit comfortably, close your eyes, then relax your muscles, beginning with your feet and slowly working up to your head. Breathe through your nose. Say the word "one" as you breathe in, and again when you breathe out. Continue this for twenty minutes. Open your eyes to check on the time, but don't use an alarm. Try this twice a day for several days, preferably not just after eating, and see if it doesn't make you feel calmer, more energetic, more self-assured and more inclined to tackle some of those unpleasant chores you've been putting off.
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Ephesians 4:28 says: "Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth."
Our quote for today is from Ambrose Bierce. He said: "A person who doubts himself is like a man who would enlist in the ranks of his enemies and bear arms against himself. He makes his failure certain by himself being the first person to be convinced of it."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are continuing with part 4 of our series titled, "Overcoming the Fear of Success".
How do you distinguish between genuine inadequacy and low self-esteem?
I wish there were some kind of litmus test that could be used to determine the difference, because it's the central question every person faces in deciding whether to try for any ambitious goal: "Do I have what it takes, or don't I?" No one can answer that question for you. Sometimes you can't answer it for yourself, either, until you've attempted the task and risked the possibility of getting in over your head, making up your mind that you'll give it your best effort anyway.
Let me just say this: chances are, your fear stems from a faulty self-image rather than from incompetence. If you have a set goal for yourself, it is probably something that you could achieve and could handle after achieving it if you would only make your move. Instead we all tend to sell ourselves short, underestimating our abilities. I referred earlier to the belief of distinguished psychologists that most humans use only a small portion of their potential, a belief shared, I think, by all thoughtful observers of the human condition. This means that you have a vast reservoir of unused talent and capability available to you. but if procrastination and timidity keep you from ever opening the floodgates, the reservoir might as well be empty.
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Ephesians 6:7-8 says: "With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord..."
Our quote for today is from Dale Carnegie. He said: "Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy."
Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are continuing with Part 3 of our series titled, “Overcoming Fear of Failure”.
In our last episode, we talked about how successes tend to occur in fixed proportions to attempts. The more often you try -- and the more failures you chalk up -- the more successes you have. Thus, if we want more success, we must simply make more attempts at doing things. We must ‘make a pile of chips.’ Today, we are going to consider how we can overcome the ‘vague dread’ of failure.
Sometimes, dealing with fear of failure isn't as simple as just forcing yourself to "make chips." Sometimes a vague dread of what might happen causes you to keep putting off the desired action. How do you deal with that?
That term vague dread holds the clue. As long as your fears are vague and undefined they are impossible to deal with, so the first step is to make them specific, concrete, identifiable. Pin down exactly what it is you're afraid of.
This is another application of Pigeonholding. The point is that it's difficult to deal with something that's hazy and general, whether you're talking about fear, procrastination, or any other problem. If you go for a medical checkup and announce that you don't feel well, you aren't given a prescription. Instead, the doctor begins to probe for more specifics. Until a precise label can be attached to your ailment it's pointless even to think about remedies.
Although, in this case, we've already identified the ailment and labeled it: the label is fear. Fear of failure. But you must push beyond that; it's still too general. Exactly why do you fear failure in this particular case? As you dig deeper you may realize, for example, that what you really dread is the embarrassment that would result from that failure. You would have to admit to your associates that you bombed, and that's what's really bothering you.
Now you have put your problem into a pigeonhole labeled Embarrassment Before Associates. You still haven't solved your problem, but you have at least isolated it. Now, instead of trying to deal with a generality -- fear of failure -- you are dealing with a specific -- your embarrassment when your associates would become aware of that failure. Now you can ask yourself some pertinent questions...