Procrastination. Otherwise known as it’s not the right time yet. Or, I’ll get to it later. Or, once I’ve figured out XYZ then we’ll do it.
Waiting, waiting, waiting for the right time until that’s all your journey becomes; a series of lost or delayed opportunities.
We’re all guilty of this and often times we’re blissfully unaware that we’re even procrastinating on our dreams. I mean, there are lots of things to plan for and prepare and the interruptions of a normal busy life feels so out of your hands and worthy of your attention.
It can seem like this is what is getting in the way but, after bringing in awareness and close inspection, you can see these as excuses covering up fear and doubt.
I noticed this the other day when it came to our USA trip. We hadn’t set a date yet. Like a real commitment date. We kept throwing possible dates out there, but would follow it with, we’ll wait to we hear back from so and so…we’ve got that conference on that might be good to attend…we won’t know for sure when we can go until we get our visas.
I popped my head up and saw that June, the flyaway date we chose, was fast approaching and was not going to happen. All that lack of commitment got in the way of us applying for the visa, which takes a month to process so we won’t get in time for a June departure.
There is so much about this trip that we haven’t figured out and is so undecided, but I realise that we’re making it so because deep down we fear we don’t have what it takes to make it happen, and we’re lacking faith in a Universe that’s always supported our dreams.
The missing connection to making it happen is our commitment.
“You know Craig, it’s time to set a date. If we don’t, we’ll keep pushing it back until we have everything ready, which won’t happen and we’ll never make America Unplugged a reality.”
We’ll share more about the date at the end of this post and how making that commitment has put things into overdrive motion.
What’s really underneath all that procrastination
Giant fears – fears that you’re not good enough, that you can’t make it happen, that the dollar will crash, that your visas won’t come through, that people will be upset with you, that you’ll miss opportunities at home, that you don’t have a clear path, you don’t know where to start, or where to go next.
The list is endless.
What we’re really fearing is change and our ability to handle it.
I’ve been almost paralysed by my fears, yet I’m a seasoned traveller and have leapt into the unknown abyss time and time again.
It’s more fearful for me now because we travel with kids AND we run an intense business that is our only source of income and provides income for the people who work for us. That’s another level of pressure most people don’t have to manage.
What if I can’t make it work? What if the pressure is too much and steals away my enjoyment of the dream? My Dad has also been sick so I’m worried about him. What if something happens to him while we’re away?
None of us know what tomorrow will bring, yet we constantly make decisions based upon our fears and things we can’t control. Instead, it’s better for us to ask and answer “what do I know to be true in this moment and how can I make a decision that will help me best enjoy this minute and maximize my potential and the joy I can feel?”
I’m glad I caught these fears before their masquerading excuses continued to delay America Unplugged.
The ducks don’t have to be all lined up in a row for you to have what you want. I know what my heart and soul wants, and I know a life lived any other way is destined for gigantic failure and unhappiness.
I’ll work through the fears. This is the exact same process I went through before we made the leap
This is the exact same process I went through before we made the leap to do our Australia road trip. I knew in my heart and soul this was the right thing to do yet my fear kept getting in my way. You can see the striking similarities in this post I wrote three years ago.
Big change will always bring big fear
Awareness will help you see this and help you know what to do each time it happens. Plus, you always have the proof of the time once before when you felt the same fears, worked with them anyway and had experiences that brought you so much joy and growth.
Big fear always brings big rewards (if you move through the fear!)
The heart and soul are calling fervently to me now. It’s time to go. I’m ready to embrace this new life and the big rewards. No more procrastination or playing small. We can do this!
We love our beautiful Burleigh, but life has other plans for us and it’s time to join it. We’ve set our date –August. Straight away we felt different. Committed. Clear. Certain. We got to work. We now have a basic itinerary mapped out. We’ve started the visa ball rolling. We’re in communication with the right people. It’s incredible the change and momentum, which has come about simply because we stopped the procrastination game.
We’ve hit publish on our promotional video. Let us know what you think:
My other huge tip for you when you’re struggling with fears and procrastination – hold yourself accountable by telling someone else. We tend to announce it to the thousands in our community – there’s no backing out now!!
Next week I’ll share with you what some of these fears around our US trip are. Some make sense, some are totally irrational.
But, that my friends, is how our beautiful minds work. The trick is to know your mind and befriend its craziness with love and the willingness to work through it together.
If you’re finding yourself procrastinating on a dream of yours follow this easy plan:
- What are all the excuses you are telling yourself as to why it can’t happen now? List them out with all the fears that lie underneath them.
- Now for each one, list why it can happen now. Come up with a logical plan as to why these fears don’t matter in this moment and how you can make it happen.
- Commit to your dream, make a date, take a step forward, do one thing that will move you toward the reality of it regardless of what those fears tell you.
- Announce it to someone and ask they help you be accountable.
- Let go and allow your dream to come.
I’m reading a great book at the moment by Wayne Dyer called Excuses Begone. He lists 18 common excuses we tell ourselves, I definitely recognised all of them. I highly recommend reading it so you can hear his wisdom for overcoming these with logical and soul-drive thought.
He says,
The right time is now.
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