Starting Strong, Finishing Stronger
Why Starting Strong is Just As Important As Finishing Strong
Happy First of the Month.. or should I say, last first day of the month for 2023! Every month, each day and all sixty seconds of each minute are never guaranteed so it’s a blessing for us all to reach the month of December. While I was reflecting, as most do during this time of year, I spent time evaluating the patterns, problems and potential that I’ve experienced this year. A key element that lies in between progress being made and problems I’ve come across was procrastination.
This month, I’d like to explore with you all, from my perspective, how procrastination affects us. This habit or tendency that most of us develop during our teenage years has hindered our development, achievement and confidence in our strengths and goals. Procrastination is a negative habit that all of us might fall into from time to time. The problem with procrastination is that it’s an overlooked habit; not often seen in the moment. Oftentimes we don’t recognize procrastination until past reflection or when we’re reminded of our goal. Procrastination can turn our once clear goals into blurry images simply because we allow time to fade the things that we can bring into reality.
A common goal setting tactic that I’m sure most of us have received in life are SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely). But how are we actually incorporating those attributes into our daily, weekly or monthly actions? As this year unfolded, I’ve asked myself many times “how do I know that I’m making tangible progress towards my goals?”. “What actions have I’ve done today or this week that has brought me closer to realizing my goal’s success?”. We, as a people, might not always have an answer. However, with as much work as we put into forming and thinking through our goals, we should become more intentional about taking steps to achieve our goals. The thing about procrastination is that we often don’t realize that we’ve been doing the act until we are reminded of what we set out for initially. For some, it might be the “most wonderful time of the year”, but for me, sometimes this time of the year.. especially those first two weeks of December, is really the “most stressful time of the year” because of finals. There were some semesters when I’d be extremely stressed and frustrated with myself because I knew if I wanted the grade I was seeking, that I would have to study hard and do my best to pass with the highest grade on my finals. And that is always a major goal, don't get me wrong, but it wouldn’t have been as stressful towards the end of the semester if I hadn’t made the habit of procrastinating on previous assignments. This, in turn, would reduce my performance because of pressures to complete by the deadline. I could go on and on with many life examples of my experiences with this! Even so, I’m still learning to this day!
Procrastination invites time to interfere with our progress. You could even say it’s a reflection of how we perceive life. NOTHING in life is guaranteed. There is no guaranteed day, hour or minute that we know for sure that we will have. If we’re honest, procrastination reflects us taking life for granted. Putting off a task that’s potentially part of your purpose for another day or month that’s not promised shows that. So, my encouragement to you AND myself is to start now. Before creating that fancy vision board or creative outline of your goals. Recognize those goals now and make reasonable progress today and not just on January 1st, 2024. Treat everyday like January 1st, because it’s a new opportunity to start from a clean slate.
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Side Notes:
Use December to decipher your patterns, problems and your potential gathered from this year and ask yourself each day before resting, “did I get a little better today?” and “how can I make reasonable progress towards my goals and potential?”. Starting strong is finishing strong, especially because you start from square one everyday!
On a more positive note: Be proud of yourself and the progress that you have made this year and always keep yourself reminded of your goals. Just know that you make get 40% closer one day and 2% closer another day, but what matters is giving 100% effort! Remember – your best looks different each day! Much love and happy holidays family!
What the Word says about Procrastination:
“Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.”
Proverbs 27:1 NKJV
“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.”
Ecclesiastes 9:10 NKJV
“Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.”
Ecclesiastes 11:4 NLT
“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
Hebrews 12:11 NIV
