When and then is something that many of us do and don’t realize it. What is it? When I (_____), then I will (______). Example: When I retire then I will travel. When I get a promotion then I will slow down. When I have time then I will work on my project. You get it. Life goes by and “when” never shows up. Then people complain that they never did their “then.”
We constantly put things on hold in our lives based on circumstances with or without our control. The mind has to change its priorities and realize the value and importance of what that “then” is. Furthermore, we need to evaluate the here and now. Evaluate where you currently are and what are the things you want to do. Then just go for it.
“It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one.”
-George Washington
Stop procrastinating
When and then seems to happen more often than not. Create a new habit to eradicate this behavior while you still have the chance. This is way easier said than done. My mind has changed in the way the thinking process works in the past couple of years. Understanding your mental procrastination process will go a long way to changing your habits. My grand example would be what most call a “Bucket List.” If you think about it the light bulb will flicker on this one. Many of the people we come across and more than likely ourselves say, “Yeah that’s on my bucket list of things to do.”
The general process is to throw it in the bucket and you will get to it someday. Many say when they retire and have more time to do it they will. Well, that sucks! Don’t feel bad, I am right there with ya. But I will say that I am very much aware of my constant habit of delaying things that I want. For me, I started writing a book in the summer of 2019 and got a good way through, and then I just stopped. Why did I stop? Because of this and this and that. Yeah, that is just a big string of excuses.
No more excuses
Being aware of it being excuses, I got back on it. No, it’s not in full swing but baby steps, right. In life, we have so many things going on. Responsibilities, distractions, and so on. The goal would be to prioritize the desire and do it. Just do it. The other night I wanted to get through an hour and a half movie without messing with my electronic devices. Sounds silly but it was something that was weighing heavy on me. I accomplished said goal with flying colors. That was one step in the right direction of setting and achieving a goal. Now it’s on to bigger ones!
Some of the frequent excuses are:
(be aware of when you say them aloud so you can decide if it is something that is on the “then” list for you)
- “I don’t have the time.”
- “I will do it tomorrow.”
- “It’s way to much to plan for.”
- “I have to wait until.”
- “My plan is when.”
- “When the house gets paid off.”
- “When the kids go off to college.”
- “I’m too old.”
- “I don’t know what I like.”
- “I need to get a balance at home and at work first.”
- “I need to create a plan for it.”
- “I have to pay the credit cards off.”
…you get the gist of this.
Stop the when and then
Getting back to the bucket thing. I hear many people say that they have something or many things on their Bucket List. This list for all the things people want to do before they die. The biggest problem with that one is that many people feel like they won’t die for many years to come. That just gives people some comfort that one day it will happen. Well, I hate to break it to you but studies show that most people with bucket lists only get to a small percentage of them. Ok, I don’t know if there’s an official study but let’s just go with it in the spirit of inspiring!
Creating action
My thought process about the bucket list thing is that the when and then will just continue feeding each other, so I created an action process. My action process is to make every attempt to get me accomplishing the items the best way I can. Being fairly realistic, I understand that there are many things in life that we can’t just “POOF” and then they appear. Some things need some smaller actions to happen before getting to the bigger one.
If you want to travel to a distant land to see majestic creatures in the wild, then you must have the ability to get there. If you aren’t currently financially able to or whatever it is that may be slowing you down, then time to quickly regroup. Create a way. “I will stop any and all unnecessary spending so that I can afford to do it!” You may have to create new and healthy habits. When and then no more!
Conclusion
Spending your life putting off the things that you want to do can only cause regrets later on. You find yourself elderly and wondering what happened to the life you wanted to live. Do your best everyday now while you can to do the things you want. Go get it!!!
If you want something bad enough then the belief is, “where there’s a will, there’s a way.” What do you think? Is this accurate or nonsense? Do tell.
*********Please respond to the questions here with us so we can learn and grow. The good and the bad will help others recognize successes and failures in our own lives. Thank you so very much!**********
