Procrastination

Procrastination

In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, the world can be a tiresome place to live in. With so many quotas and deadlines to meet, the world is constantly caught up in one huge rush order. We all know people who are obsessive compulsive about every little detail. They are the people who keep every piece of paper that comes under their possession in a marked file. They mark every due date in their planners, and get to work on it the moment they get home from school, no matter how long they may have to get it done. You may say that it is an admirable quality to be prepared, but upon closer examination, anybody can see that a person consumed by such a characteristic is simply robotic.

Why rush life? It’s a question I ask myself frequently. I look around and I see so many lost souls, confined to their programmed routines, never stopping to enjoy their surroundings. They have a deadline to meet, and their primal instincts tell them their project must be complete before its actually due. In the words of Ryan Shupe, these are the kind of people who miss things every day, simply because they are driving in the fast lane. They don’t get to smell the flowers or enjoy the ride; their destination is far more important to them than the process of getting there.

I am the kind of person who likes to smell the flowers along the road. In fact, I’d say that I’m the person most people see picking the flowers as they wiz by going a mile a minute. Everyone makes the word “procrastination” out to be an abomination, but in my opinion, it smells rather nice. While everyone else has the wind in their face and a huge assignment in the back of their minds, I find myself care-free and relaxed, strolling along on my merry way.

Of course, when the due date comes and everyone else has finished the work, I am still smelling the flowers on the wayside. Those finished with their work scoff at me and tell me there is no hope for one such as I. They tell me my procrastination has gotten me nowhere, that I can’t possibly accomplish my aims. If they could see clearly, they would realize that their workaholic mind-set has gotten them even further behind than me in the race of life, and they wouldn’t be chastising me. It is at times like this that I leave my flowers and pick up my pencil and gather my thoughts. I begin a steady sprint to the finish. I weave into my work every conscious particle of my refreshed mind, and I finish the race.

Panting at the finish line, I read back over my work and find something far more profound than any automated response my hasty counterparts pulled together. In their rush to finish early they forgot the most important element of work: play. Procrastination is not putting of work until the last possible second; rather, it is making work a walk, a game, and a sprint in the park. In my defense, I never put off work. I simply start my work with something that will get my mind off of it.

It is plain to see that procrastination is the real key to success. Forget automation. Infuse work with play, and with a little bit of a kick at the end of the race, you’ll finish stronger than any robot could ever manage. Take the time to smell the flowers. “Time flies too fast, I got to make it last. So enjoy it; relax, chill out, just give it a try. I say simplify.” Ryan Shupe has definitely got the right idea.