Paralyzing Procrastination -- What's It Teaching You?

We tend think of procrastination as a bad thing -- a lack of will power, determination, focus -- like it's some moral failing.

What if it were a signal to heed, or a lesson to be learned? What if we could take the negative spin off of this eddy in our energy flow and see if it has a productive purpose?

Physiologically, we all have what's called the alert or stress response. Typically it's known as the fight or flight response. But another component is present in all animals, including humans, when this alert system is triggered -- the freeze option.

Procrastination is a form of either flight from doing what needs to be done, or it's a type of mental, emotional, behavioral freeze designed to not attract attention,not put ourselves in danger, and not end up eaten by the predator that's stalking us. Either way, procrastination is a signal that some part of us perceives trouble -- real or imagined -- and is trying to act in its idea of our best interest.

Ask yourself how your procrastination is benefiting you. What's the trouble or danger you fear? Is it real? Is it bigger than the trouble you're creating by not taking direct action? What do you need to help you fight the fear?

Spiritually, procrastination might be viewed as a situation in which a guardian angel or some other helpful unseen being is holding us, preventing forward movement because we're headed in a direction that will take us out of alignment with our soul's needs or desires.

Consider for a moment how your paralyzing procrastination might be a safety net thrown around you by a watchful spirit whose job it is to keep you from wandering too far off your destined path. In what directions are you more free to move? What would this watchful spirit tell you, if you could hear or sense it speaking to you?

What Are You Waiting For?

I've begun to think that the old adage that patience is a virtue may be an outmoded relic of the past. It needs examining, if, as I suspect, the character trait of patience becomes the behavior of waiting too long to make change or manifest your dreams.

Much of so-called patience is just procrastination. And procrastination is a form of self-sabotage.

Patience can be sneaky. It sounds good to say we are waiting for right timing, or more resources, or for someone else to respond or take an action. A particularly deceptive form of sabotaging patience is in the idea that things are in motion and we are letting them play out.

Oh, I admit that all of those things may be true and valid in and of themselves. And what I see in many of my coaching clients is that this mindset can also be the mantra of excuses-making for staying too long in a comfort zone when there is an underlying commitment to be risk-avoidant.

If you believe yourself to be a patient person, if you take pride in that, it may well be an admirable virtue in your character. And nonetheless, I encourage you to ask yourself these powerful self-reflective questions, and see if you uncover a saboteur you didn't realize was lurking in you.

• Today, what am I waiting for? Is there really no forward movement I can take?
• Is what I'm waiting for contributing to a delay in making progress on other goals?
• What am I feeling while in this waiting state?
• What could I be doing on this or other projects that might move me forward differently, or faster?
• What risk am I avoiding by this waiting? Is that really a good idea, or is it hurting my success?
• If today's waiting is really productive, what else can I start or work on or finish in the meantime?
• What alternatives to waiting would be best for me right now, or best for my long term goals?