Driving Towards Deadlines

Deadlines can push me to be more or they can crush me with the help of procrastination. I have discovered that putting things off until they can no longer be put off will not make me better – even it if does get my adrenaline pumping. It will often make me late or cause me to miss out on an opportunity altogether.

I do well when I am pressured, but it has to be a pressure that will not let down others. Developing internal deadlines, that push me to be more than I was yesterday, will give me the tools to succeed beyond my wildest imagination.

Building Internal Deadlines

• Set some goals. Put down some things that you want to do or places that you want to be in your life in the next five years. These will help you begin your journey to internal deadlines.
• Make a list of what it will take to reach each goal. There will be steps that have to be taken to lead you down the paths that you desire.
• Break down each item on the list into new actions, behaviors or habits. Seeing the little pieces of the big picture will help you get to that place.
• Create a list of daily tasks. Look at what you can do, just a little each day, to begin reaching for each piece in the puzzle.
• Implement the lists. Taking the daily pieces and putting them into play will create new habits that will drive you closer to those goals that will lead you to your ultimate destination.

Each of these items can be the deadlines that will push me beyond where I am and drive me to where I want to be. Making the choice to do them daily – and not waiting to cram them all together at the end will give me the freedom to go beyond even what I might have hoped or imagined.

Procrastination does not have to have control. One choice, each day, can be the difference between driving towards a deadline and being driven by that deadline.