Happy New Year!? I believe this is the most used phrase this month. We all said it, we’ve all had it said to us.
But what does it mean and what’s the relationship with procrastination?
The reason that I am starting the year with a procrastination topic is not by chance.
We are obsessed with productivity.
Being disciplined.
Doing what we say we do.
Checking off our resolutions as soon as possible.
Making long lists of our achievements and surpassing those in this new year.
Being happy and fulfilled.
And the beginning of the year (especially when it’s on a Monday) is the perfect moment to do this.
Don’t get me wrong. These are all good in their contexts, but in my experience, people get stuck in these behaviors.
They become mantras instead of being activities to go somewhere.
They become the measure of one’s worth.
This is the point where being productive becomes toxic. And, not paradoxically at all, when procrastination tends to appear.
Some years ago I got into the habit of doing a sort of overview of the past year in December. I write there everything that I can think of that made me proud. Even if they are small things. I don’t group them in personal/ professional - I just write.
I do this because it helps me see what areas had my focus last year, what areas I overlooked maybe, what brought me the best joy, and what didn’t.
Then I make a list of things that I want to do in the next year.
Some I copy from the previous year’s ‘to-do’ list because I failed to reach them and they are still important.
Some I realized I didn’t want to do or that they became unimportant to me.
The same, I don’t group them (anymore). I just write.
This helps me focus on the areas that I that moment have some importance to me.
I do this list just for myself - not sharable, except with my partner if I think it’s helpful.
I do it because it helps me take the pressure off doing stuff.
I do it because it helps me see what helped me change in the past year.
I also do it because it helps me see what things have become not important to me anymore.
And that is the most important aspect.
I realized doing this that there are areas that I criticized myself for not doing, that were not important to me. But were just there because they sounded good, were aspirational or just fit in with others.
I notice how I wrote things on my to-do list that I no longer want to do because they don’t align with my values or the way that I want to live my life anymore.
My point is, to be kind to yourself when starting a new year. I know 2024 started on a Monday and for some of you that meant “I have no excuses”, bla bla bla.
That phrase is not kind. It smells like bullying.
So be kind and think about what was important for you in the past year.
What made you proud? What did you do that you enjoyed?
What isn’t important to you anymore now?
What did you try to do, but didn’t succeed?
Is this important to you still? Or do you want to do it so your mind won’t bully you?
The next topics will cover procrastination and dealing with it, but not the way that you think. No goal-setting on the horizon!
Have a kind year!