stop procrastinating

I am wondering if this is the right goal for me? I don’t have a problem getting things done. It is more to do with the number of things to be done and finding the time to do them all. Lists help, obviously but is it really procrastination? Maintaining and updating the list either in my pocket diary or my smartphone may help do the same thing. Food for thought!

1. Blog entries for this week
   * GKK : Tue, Thu, Sat
   * G : Mon, Wed, Fri
   * L : Mon, Wed, Fri
   * MeG : Tue, Thu, Sat
   * SKYM : Mon, Thu, Sat
2. Clean my desk
   * At home
   * At work
3. Buy fireplace doors
   * get them installed once they arrive
4. Schedule pest control outside by end of Feb
5. Sort items for donation box – IN PROGRESS
6. SafeHaven donations
   * Sort items – IN PROGRESS
   * Call SafeHaven to schedule drop off
7. Hang door hooks in bathroom (3)
8. Move Z’s bed back to original position
9. Wash garden stakes, pack and store
10. Close ipage account
11. Laundry
12. Empty suitcases and put them away (3)
13. Switch to my work purse
14. Get dryer vent cleaned
15. Sort items for recycling and put them out on Friday for pickup
16. Change porch light

1. Read books requested on PBS and mail them
   * Who Do, Voodoo
   * True Evil
   * Brink of Death
   * The Girl Who Disappeared Twice
2. Mail the books

:) The list is longer than usual but that is to be expected when one is out on vacation. Take it one item at a time and it will get done.

1. Write blog entries for the coming week
   * GKK – Tue, Thu, Sat
   * L – Mon, Wed, Fri
   * G – Mon, Wed, Fri
   * MeG – Tue, Thu, Sat
2. Add lunch money to school account
3. Visit the library
4. Return Netflix DVD
5. Close ipage account – IN PROGRESS
   * download files
   * update domain DNS
   * send request to delete account
6. Cancel Redbox trial membership – ambivalent about this. Will sleep on it
7. Put away Christmas decorations and lights
8. Sort through at least two unopened boxes
9. Hang new curtains in the office
10. Window shop for drapery hw for bedroom
11. LAUNDRY!!!! – IN PROGRESS
12. Mail books requested on PBS
13. Clear out my desk as much as possible – IN PROGRESS
14. Sort through accumulated mail
15. Grocery shopping for the week
16. Pay bills, check bank statements and accounts
17. Catch up on my sleep
18. Transferred vacation photos to media server
19. Changed glade filters throughout the house
20. Changed air filters around the house
21. Changed vacuum bags
22. Made a list of things to do around the house in 2013

1. Complete blog entries for this week – 4 blogs x 3 entries = 12 posts
   * GKK – Tue, Thu, Sat
   * L – Mon, Wed, Fri
   * G – Mon, Wed, Fri
   * MeG – Tue, Thu, Sat
2. Add lunch money to school account
3. Big report due at work
4. Cancel WW program – Wednesday
5. Return books to the library – Thursday
6. Mail books to friends – Friday
7. Finish reading other two for mailing
8. Return Netflix DVD – Friday
9. Move one site from iPage to Weebly – Friday
10. Close ipage account – Friday
11. Go to the salon before my trip – Saturday
12. Cancel Redbox trial membership – Saturday
    * Use credits 4/4
13. Finish packing – Saturday
14. Called cc and banks to add travel advisory in case I need to use any of the cards
15. Scheduled bill payments

When you have a great and difficult task, something perhaps almost impossible, if you only work a little at a time, every day a little suddenly the work will finish itself.
- Isak Dinesen

1. Take my medicine and weigh myself
2. Finish reading one book and then mail it
3. Print out postage for three books
4. Mail two books already read
5. Drop off UPS package at store
6. Renew library books
7. Take down the Christmas lights and put them away
8. Complete grocery shopping for the week
9. Buy a pair of jeans—> Decided I can live without a new pair for now
10. Finish laundry
11. Pay bills and track budget
12. Start packing for my trip next weekend
13. Prepare my blog entries for the next three weeks
14. Complete report due on Monday

Made good progress with some things but there are definitely a few things I know I need to address that I have not tackled yet. Will need to get to those in the next 10 days before I leave for my trip.

How does you measure progress with this goal? This is one of the biggest dilemnas with this goal. I will always have things to do and timelines and deliverables both at work and at home so having nothing left to do (God, what a dreadful thought!) is obviously not the answer. So then how do I track whether the steps I am taking to address this are really working or do I need to make changes? I KNOW when I am procrastinating but there seems to be no way to make it more tangible for me to do a course correction or identify when it is happening or why. I am hoping someone out there has an answer. :-)

Making daily lists and keeping them in the open has had an impact. It helps to see what needs to be done and seeing things being delayed for days makes me realize that I am putting off something important, something that needs to be done and how many days I have been doing it. That, by itself, goads me into doing something about it without further delay.

I am not where I want to be with this goal, obviously but I feel I have made a good start in 2009. Now to sustain the momentum…

A very happy, prosperous and productive New Year to all!!! :-)

I started the new year by accomplishing one goal – listing 100 things which make me happy! Makes me feel good to have completed something on the first day of the new year.

One of the things I hope to finish today is take stock of the goals listed to see if any changes need to be made.