These words by Thomas Huxley, were what got me through my four years of high school. I posted this quote on a neon yellow index card and stuck it to my computer screen several years ago, and it somehow helped me get by. The constant battle between productivity and procrastination has always been one of my biggest struggles, and still is today, which is something I imagine quite a few of you can relate to.
Like so many of our generation, I find myself wasting away countless hours everyday browsing the web, watching Netflix, napping excessively, surfing social media, watching youtube, or simply doing nothing.
So how do you surpass this wave of laziness, and make it to the untapped potential on the other side?
I read an article today called "The Psychology of Laziness", so here is an excerpt I believe was especially thought-provoking, for those of you who are interested.
Psychological Theories of Laziness (by M.D. Neel Burton)
"In most cases, it is deemed painful to expend effort on long-term goals that do not provide immediate gratification. For a person to embark on a project, he has to value the return on his labour more than his loss of comfort. The problem is that he is disinclined to trust in a return that is both distant and uncertain. Because self-confident people are more apt to trust in the success and pay-off of their undertakings (and may even overestimate their likely returns), they are much more likely to overcome their natural laziness.
People are also poor calculators. Tonight they may eat and drink indiscriminately, without factoring in the longer-term consequences for their health and appearance, or even tomorrow morning's hangover. The ancient philosopher Epicurus famously argued that pleasure is the highest good. But he cautioned that not everything that is pleasurable should be pursued, and not everything that is painful should be avoided. Instead, a kind of hedonistic calculus should be applied to determine which things are most likely to result in the greatest pleasure over time, and it is above all this hedonistic calculus that people are unable to handle.
Many lazy people are not intrinsically lazy, but are lazy because they have not found what they want to do, or because, for one reason or another, they are not doing it. To make matters worse, the job that pays their bills may have become so abstract and specialized that they can no longer fully grasp its purpose or product, and, by extension, their part in bettering other peoples' lives. A builder can look upon the houses that he has built, and a doctor can take pride and satisfaction in the restored health and gratitude of his patients, but an assistant deputy financial controller in a large corporation cannot be at all certain of the effect of his labour—and so why bother?
Other factors that can lead to laziness are fear and hopelessness. Some people fear success, or do not have sufficient self-esteem to feel comfortable with success, and laziness is one way in which they can sabotage themself. Shakespeare conveys this idea much more eloquently and succinctly in Antony and Cleopatra: 'Fortune knows we scorn her most when most she offers blows.' Conversely, some people fear failure, and laziness is preferable to failure because it is at one remove. "It's not that I failed," they tell themselves, "it's that I never tried."
Other people are lazy because they see their situation as being so hopeless that they cannot even begin to think through it, let alone address it. Because these people do not have the ability to think through and address their situation, it could be argued that they are not truly lazy, and, to some extent, the same could be said of all lazy people. In other words, the very concept of laziness presupposes the ability to choose not to be lazy, that is, presupposes the existence of free will.
The Solution: I could have ended this article with a self-help pep talk or the top-10 tips to overcome laziness, but, in the longer term, the only way to overcome laziness is to profoundly understand its nature and particular causes: to think, think, and think, and, over the years, slowly find a better way of living."
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/hide-and-seek/201410/the-psychology-laziness
With my junior year of college fast approaching, it is things like these that I think about. As a pre-dental student, junior year is one of the most crucial of my undergrad degree. Just a few of the things I need to do include starting my dental school file, studying for my DAT test, making sure my resume is well-rounded, continuing to do well in my classes as they get harder, and balancing my job, studying, and other extracurricular activities. The stark realization that I have run out of time to waste, hit me like a ton of bricks. If I don't kick into gear, start working harder, procrastinating less, studying more, and striving toward bigger goals NOW, soon it will be too late. But sometimes, even the thought of being jobless, helpless, and a failure, are not enough to spark my inner motivation and drive me toward success.
Procrastination vs. Productivity: Round 1
Shadowing dentists is something I have been putting off since last semester. I convinced myself that I would be much too busy to shadow during the Spring, because I would be taking harder classes like organic chemistry, so I declined to submit my shadowing application to Pre-Dental Society at the start of the semester. I am beginning to think that this may just have been an excuse or simply fear of the unknown.
Round 1 goes to Procrastination.
Round 2:
I promised myself profusely at the end of Spring semester, that this summer I would at least put in the effort to try and find a place to shadow. It took me a few weeks, but one afternoon, I finally picked up the phone and made some calls. I left my information with a few local dentist offices, and then I waited. A few days later, one office returned my call. They were more than happy to let me come in and shadow, and even allowed me to work it in around my busy schedule. So I went to Walmart, bought my scrubs, and got a notebook to write my experiences in. My first day will be tomorrow.
Round 2 goes to Productivity.
Round 3:
Part of me is looking forward to the shadowing experience, and the opportunity to learn first-hand what a day in the life of an actual dentist is. The other half of me is dreading the day, and constantly running through every possible way in which things could go wrong. What if I end up hating dentistry? It's too late in my degree plan to switch tracks again. What if the dentist thinks I'm annoying or a nuisance? It's too late to find another office to shadow in. What if my scrubs look stupid? It's too late to go look for more by tomorrow. What if my summer classes, DAT prep, work, studying, and shadowing are too much to handle all at once? If I burn out and experience a mental breakdown, who's gonna be around to pick up the pieces...
So yet again, my all too familiar friends make another appearance...
Round 3 goes to Stress and Anxiety.
The mind is a complex place full of our most frequent fears, our darkest secrets, our strongest longings, our past regrets, our deepest desires. I think Neel Burton was on to something when he said "the only way to overcome laziness is to profoundly understand its nature and particular causes: to think, think, and think, and, slowly find a better way of living."
We must train our minds to think in our favor, to ignore the fears, doubts, and hesitations, and instead listen to the affirmations, encouragement, and positivity life has to offer us if we only embrace it. So until next time, I leave you with these quotes, and a challenge to take a moment today to stop and truly analyze why you are lazy, what makes you procrastinate, and what you're really afraid of in life.
“You will find there are times you must grasp your life with both hands and forcefully steer it in a new direction and then strain to hold your course until the storms of fear, weakness, and doubt abate.”
“Life’s challenges are inevitable. We have to prepare mentally by renewing our mind with inspiration daily to be able to cope when the situation arise.”
Carpe Diem,
Marian
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