Words create worlds. They hold meaning and charge. All of which is energy.
The word “procrastination” dates back to the 1500’s so over centuries, this word has gained great power.
The question is, “how are you using this power?”
What Are You Putting Off Until Tomorrow?
According to one source, the etymology of the word, “procrastination” is derived from the Latin verb procrastinare — to put off until tomorrow.
However, it’s more than just voluntarily delaying. Procrastination is also derived from the ancient Greek word akrasia — doing something against our better judgment.
This might also be viewed as going against ourselves, which never feels good.
The power of procrastination can cause us to feel like the weight of the world is upon us. Shifting the power of this word gives us back our power so in the end it simply is a word.
How do you feel when you procrastinate?
On some level, we are typically aware that we are doing one thing, when we should be doing another. So let’s back up for a moment and examine the word should. There are days when I find that I’m shoulding all over myself.
So check in now. How does this word make you feel? The word “should” can activate an authoritative voice from our past.
Perhaps it was our parents voice pushing us to do our homework when we’d rather keep playing.
Ultimately we’d have to put down that thing that made our heart smile to do something that made us feel less so.
Putting done something we love in exchange for doing something someone else wants us to do can be viewed as going against ourselves.
So does procrastination on a deeper level remind us of the loss of the things we once loved and longed to do?
Did procrastination cause us to put off what we loved to do for something or someone else?
OR, does it activate the opportunity to heal that unfulfilled experience or shift that conditioning so we can then truly embrace having it all?
What are your thoughts?
We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.~Anais Nin
To explore our inner landscape can be so rich and deeply satisfying.
The gold is in the awareness that we can choose to change our story and our relationship to it, which often opens the door to more easily experiencing our aspirations.
Try this Empowerment Exercise:
✨Consider replacing the word should with better feeling, more empowering words like
“I get to” or “I choose to.” Really get excited!
✨Lean into the feeling of empowerment that surfaces from your chosen words as you realize YOU have say, YOU have choice from a place of your truth versus someone else’s agenda.
✨Now, apply these words with that sense of empowerment, “I get to procrastinate”! Woohoo!
✨Notice how choice and empowerment helps to dissolve any unpleasant feelings.
✨Notice if your heart is beginning to smile.
✨Now from this place of feeling better, where you’ve powerfully just regulated your cortisol and created more coherent brain waves, choose with the least amount of judgement and with pure awareness in this better feeling state, what your heart would prefer to do.
Your Creative Power
Perhaps, the many delights of our childhood (our creative energy) were put on hold too often in order for our parents’ agenda to be executed.
Perhaps, procrastination is the simple longing and reminder of these delights, these feelings of joy to be included in all that we do.
Procrastination then isn’t bad or wrong. It’s appearing as an opportunity rather, to satisfy a deeper need.
Then as we allow this need to be met, we can leverage that full potential of energy to focus on all that makes our hearts smile and to bring our smiling hearts to all that we do.
In this way, we find that we have plenty of energy, focus and time to get everything done in a way that is enjoyable.
