Going in circles
August 18th, 2007 by boon
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Originally uploaded by Na swiecie.
I’ve recently got myself a Remember The Milk account. It’s a web service that allows you to keep track of your tasks, and for the most part it does the job really well. It sends me email reminders, integrates with Google Calendar, and a host of other things.
The problem isn’t about the tool, rather than it is about me. I can’t seem to accomplish the things I want to do. And looking at all my tasks, they all seem to be in the mid- to long-term space, which got me thinking – is this why I keep going in circles?
I’m rather okay with stuff that I need to get done in a minute or two. Urgent tasks, sure. It’s all this other stuff that seems ripe for procrastination – getting my mp3 head unit swapped for the two cars, finishing up the website I promised to do, fixing up the shelves I bought from Ikea two months ago,… that sort of stuff.
I seem uncomfortable to set aside time amidst my time to get those things done. Partly because some of these things actually take up some amount of effort and duration.
I’ve also attempted to place gateways for these tasks, and some of it has been helpful, but otherwise not. I’m not a stickler for dates, and I’ve had fits with my wife about this before. I’m just “too” flexible. Upon reading one of Penelope Trunk’s articles, I stumbled upon the word “time optimist” – which is a nice way of saying you tend to be late all the time.
I’m trying to change, but I think it’s a learning process. Planning is a skill, not a nature. Then, there are mindsets that alleviate some of the psychological barriers pertaining to procrastination – which I have to explore. In occasional self analysis, I discover some of my temporal values to be out of whack, like ignoring the importance of common household chores in order to get my ounce of daily internet.
I don’t live in a college dorm anymore. Life is hard.