Hi Joshua,
I was wondering if you could talk to me a bit about procrastination. I find when I am at home on my time off, all I want to do is lay around and nap all day. I have things I need to do like dishes, tidying, laundry, cooking, etc. but I just procrastinate from these things and sit on the couch all day. But while I am lazing around I am not even enjoying it properly because there is always this background guilt! I'd like to be a person who is super energetic during the day and just wants to get things done. What's your perspective on this?
Thanks,
Emma
Dear Emma,
We think procrastination is a wonderful thing. Procrastination is not taking action when not inspired. Take action when inspired and you will engage the forces of the universe. When you take action when not inspired just because you think you should, you make it so much harder and more unpleasant than it needs to be. Eventually, you will receive the inspiration to do the things you need to do and then you will find it easy to do them. The only problem we with procrastination is the guilt associated with it. Release the guilt.
When you feel guilt, you realize that it is a negative emotion and you know what that means. You are disagreeing with your inner self. Your inner self sees no need to take action when not inspired. Your inner self has no problem with the dishes in the sink, the messy space, or any of that. When you need to do these things, you will be inspired to do them. Just because someone once told you that you must constantly be doing something doesn't mean they knew what they were talking about. It doesn't make you good to have a clean house and it doesn't make you bad to leave a little mess when you're not inspired to tidy up.
Now think about taking action when inspiration strikes. Isn't that so much more effective? Don't you get things accomplished so much more easily? Doesn't everything seem to go by quickly? If you are not inspired, there's no need to do anything but lay on the couch and relax. However, when inspiration does strike, you can know that the time is right. Take action in the moment. Do not hesitate. Push past any doubts or small fears and just move in the direction of the inspiration.
If you are inspired to call a friend, call her now. If you are inspired to search for something online, do it now. If you get an idea, write it down and look into it in the moment. You were led to us because you followed inspiration. Everything you want will be revealed to you when you are ready. If you receive an idea, it means you are ready for that idea and you can move in the direction that feels fun and exciting. Just get up and move no matter what it is. Until then, enjoy your time relaxing on the couch.
With Love,
Joshua
