Get Tough With Yourself (Part 1)

Proverbs 18:9 says: "He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster."

Our quote for today is from Philip Stanhope. He said: "Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness, no laziness, no procrastination: never put off till tomorrow what you can do today."

Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are looking at Part 1 of Step 6: "Get Tough With Yourself".

Many people consider themselves to have no willpower or ability to overcome procrastination. In making this assumption, they sell themselves short. When a crisis strikes, most people have vast reserves of an ability to overcome adversity. 

Most achievers are simply ordinary people who to put forth extraordinary effort without the urging of another person. They have developed exceptional willpower by practice and effort until they reach the point at which they can call for an exceptional effort on a regular basis. Then and only then are they in a situation to achieve something very challenging. 

Humans grow strong and robust by adjusting to larger and larger demands. This is as true in the emotional and mental fields as it is in any physical endeavour. Therefore, by regularly taking an unpleasant task and accomplishing it, you are laying a stronger and more powerful foundation for achieving other more difficult tasks further in the future. 

One particularly useful habit is decisiveness. When you insist on decisiveness and demand it of yourself, you are much more likely to be sleeping on your accomplishments rather than on your problems.