Let's procrastinate about procrastinating.

I don't normally do this. No, I'm not talking about procrastinating; that I seem to do on a fairly regular basis. As I'm sure we all do if we're honest enough to admit it. I'm talking about looking up definitions of certain words and then inserting those definitions into a piece I'm writing. It brings slightly unpleasant memories of high-school essays. Slightly only because I've always loved writing; unpleasant because it had to be graded and thereby everything was geared towards earning brownie points with the examiner.

So back to definitions. What is procrastination and why do we do it? For those who have honestly never indulged in procrastinating please forgive me for the assumption. Once again I beg for forgiveness for using the Wikipedia definition; but I liked the way it was phrased,

" ..procrastination refers to the act of replacing high-priority actions with tasks of lower priority, or doing something from which one derives enjoyment, and thus putting off important tasks to a later time..."

We humans are creatures of logic at least most of the time- unless superstitions are involved in which case we throw logic and good sense out the window- so it begs the question why do we procrastinate? Why do we put off something that we can do now until later? Why do we wait until the proverbial 'last minute'? Sometimes it's just pure laziness. Or we don't value our time and think we have all the time in the world until calamity strikes and it becomes too late. There are some tasks that perhaps can be postponed but things like our health, finances, and spending time with our loved ones really can't be put off because before we may realize that one seemingly simple act of delaying may turn into a viscious cycle of destruction.

Procrastination is like a poison that slowly eats into each and every part of us and destroys that sense of urgency we need to have. It starts nibbling away at your priorities, then goes on to slowly attack your dreams, your passion and your very purpose for living. The danger of it is that it happens so quietly, and stealthily like a thief.

How do we get rid of it? Make a list of priorities; things that must get done no matter what. And since we like to enjoy ourselves, make some time for play and leisure so you feel like you're not being deprived. And take it step-by-step and enjoy the process. Re-claim your life. You are worth it.