Procrastination: A Hindrance to Success?

Successful people achieve the kind of success they have right now through hard work and patience. It is inevitable, though, that there were instances during their “striving moments” wherein luck played its cards and paved way their roads for success.  But, generally, it is just a matter of discipline and initiative if one really wants to achieve success.

According to most successful individuals, the best ingredient for a successful career is diligence.  Diligence is the human value of exerting efforts to fulfill a task without resorting to negligence or irresponsibleness. Surveys showed that not all successful people are highly intelligent with an above average IQ level. There are those who have not gone to the best universities or have not even finished schooling. There are those who are just high school graduates, yet they have the most booming businesses in the market. Hence, one can really say that success is defined mostly by attitude and passion – attitude to excel and be diligently passionate about it.

Not everybody, however, have the same mindsets when it comes to achieving success. There are those who are just too lazy to get up for work, while some lack the enthusiasm in their workplace. There are individuals who are contented not to do anything productive and, instead, prefer to do things, which are not only “unhealthy” but also adversely affecting their jobs such as sleeping too much, unimaginable hook-up time with the television, or too much partying.

Furthermore, there are individuals who love to procrastinate resulting to undone works and deadlines left in whim. Procrastinators like to do their tasks at the very last minute. They have this attitude of doing their tasks on a later date of the schedule which could result to low quality of work outputs due to cramming.  Accordingly, procrastination has now gained momentum as one of the favorite topics among recent research works, especially studies on human behavior. It is now becoming famous as a subject for study because some considered it as an interesting topic since procrastination is a natural part of human nature. If talked about, all people can relate to the state of procrastinating.

What is procrastination?

Studies showed that procrastination excuses no one. Everybody procrastinates – it is part of human nature. Accordingly, it is only natural among people to put aside their tasks and do it on a later time because for the simple reason of not wanting to do it at a specific time.  There are also those who love to cram and find cramming effective in fulfilling their various tasks. Meanwhile, procrastination does not necessarily mean that one is lazy or inefficient; they are just used to put off until the next day things that are supposed to be done now.

Scientific researches stated that procrastination is the act of postponing a certain thing to do (or task) to the point that one’s work becomes delayed.  There are many factors involve why people procrastinate. Firstly, some individuals lack self-confidence that they can really succeed in doing their work if they are just diligent enough to do it and finish it on time. There is a tendency among humans wherein, even from the very start, they are not confident enough that they can finish their tasks on time or to have it done flawlessly; hence, they resorted to intervening variables or “comforting things” around which can delay in the fulfillment of their jobs.

With all the latest technology and media’s influence, people easily get distracted from concentrating in their works.  This is often the reason why some people put aside their important tasks because they got tempted to do other things present in their surroundings that stirs their interest.  People lack focus in their workplace because of unnecessary interruptions brought by a fast-growing society.  Mood can also be another triggering factor why people procrastinate.  Individuals, especially artists, rely so much on their mood in order for their works to be effective. Painters, songwriters, novelists and dancers do not find it effective to do their crafts if their mood to do such is not present.  This often leads to put aside such work and save it for some other time when the mood is right.

If low self-esteem is one factor why people procrastinate, over confidence could also be deemed as another reason why people procrastinate. Notably, people with overzealous confidence often think of themselves as someone who can really beat the deadline at the same time producing high-quality work outputs. However, such case is not always applicable. Because of too much confidence that one can do his/her job even just for a short time often results to low-quality outputs because it is being done out in a hurry.

Too many workloads can sometimes lead to procrastination. Because of too much work, one cannot choose anymore which task should be accomplished first.  Because of frustration and pressure, one chooses not to do anything anymore. This is a perfect manifestation that one, instead, prefers to escape from the bulk of works that need to be done than face all of those.

Diligence is still the key

Although  some human behavioral experts claimed that procrastination has its own share of benefits because it gives time for men/women to relax and meditate before doing all their tasks, still it cannot be discounted that procrastination is generally not a healthy practice.  Although there are those who find it effective to have their jobs done in just a short time and loving the pressure of finishing such, still, procrastination should not be exercised regularly.

True enough that humans are all procrastinators in nature, but one should think that it is just a matter of managing your emotions and rising above from all the intervening factors around. One should take into mind, that if one really wants to succeed in life and in work, they should try to avoid procrastinating because, as tested by time, diligence is still the best key to success.

Hard Work: A Key to Prosperity

Hard work means doing your best effort to accomplish a task for a specific goal. It is how much time you spend on a particular work to achieve your purpose. It also means doing your job unselfishly and sincerely. Working hard means producing more. And when you produce more, you earn much.  A person’s future depends primarily on hard work and perseverance.  Working hard is also a challenging role in one’s life in order to succeed. It is challenging in a sense that, you need a great deal of effort and time to justify the meaning and importance of your work. It is a no retreat, no surrender obligation. Hard work is an obligation because a person who is aiming for something needs to give his best and full effort in order to succeed and prosper in his own field.

This kind of attitude must therefore, be inculcated in the minds of people even at their very early years in life. As they say, the earlier, the better. When taught as a small kid, with a brain still so soft as a cotton, the art of learning is very simple. This is because, one’s still a kid, following directions and instructions is so easy. The child has still no knowledge about being rebellious. What an adult says to a child, he would surely follow it. So when a child is taught to be hard working, he will try to do it.  And he will do it repeatedly every time he has a certain task to do. As he grows older, he will be used to working hard because it will already become his habit to give his best effort in everything that he does. With this kind of attitude, whatever problem, he encounters in his life, he will try to solve it with diligence and patience combined with hard work. And there is no way he cannot solve the problem. So whatever endeavor this person does, he will surely prosper, may it be economically or personally.

Hard work, therefore, is something you will look forward to because you know that it will lead you to prosperity. It makes a big difference in your life. You should always go with the flow but with so much care and tenderness. You should learn to love hard work. Because when you have that, instead of running away from it, you will gain the ability to set your own goals and dreams in life. No matter what it takes, obstacles could not stop you from working hard because it is already instilled in your heart. And it will remain as long as you live. And as long as you have your life and have a big dream for yourself, hard work is not an option. It is a necessity. And there, whatever fear you would feel, you would overcome it for you have a significant purpose in your life. And that purpose drives you to work hard and makes you truly understand the meaning of a successful and prosperous life.

Wonders of Cooking

Cooking is fun. It is both a wonder and a mystery. It is also an art. When cooking, one has to use his imagination and be artistic in order to come up with a delicious recipe.  It is not only applicable to adults but also to the young ones, male or female. What matters is the interest one puts in his life. It is a good feeling when one knows how to cook even at an early age.  Cooking also requires patience, interest and innovativeness. Cooking is an everyday learning. Every time you cook, you always find new discoveries, new tastes and new likes.

In learning how to cook, one may not go to school to study about cooking.  You need not spend a lot of money for the school tuition fee. Instead, it can be done at home, on your own or through your friends or relatives.  You just need to have the guts to learn and be interested in cooking. You may buy a book containing simple recipes, or you may opt to experiment cooking by yourself. It requires a little effort, confidence and patience, though to become a cook. You may not be an expert of it, but at least, you can try to cook a presentable and delicious food. Naturally, it starts from a very simple recipe like frying an egg, fish, meat or chicken. Then you will try to discover new recipes from your own imagination. And from there, you will learn to explore different kinds of recipes. Until such time that you will become an expert in cooking. And who knows, in the end you will become a very successful chef.

It is an advantage when one learns how to cook at a very young age. Age does not really matter that much, as long as the kid is already responsible enough to learn, then he can start learning how to cook.  What is important is to teach the child first on how to handle a knife and let him understand that a knife could be dangerous when not used properly.  This is because, a knife is a primary utensil used in preparing your ingredients for cooking. And it is the most dangerous among all utensils. Not only will a child be taught on how to slice, cut, chop or peel, but also he should be taught to clean the ingredients first before cooking. As such, he should also be taught on how to be clean and healthy in whatever he does. He must be taught in a way that he will give interest in cooking until he becomes a responsible adult and makes learning a fun-filled one for him. Cooking at an early age is a great advantage because a child can acquire independent food skills and can promote his youth development positively. So as the child grows, he will develop a positive approach in his life. He will not only resort to playing when not in school, instead, he will also spend some of his time in cooking. Aside from this, the child will be able to learn how to manage his time. When the child is already a teenager, he can fully help his mother and father in the kitchen.  It is no longer a problem for the family on who is going to cook on a particular meal, most especially, when there is no housemaid to do the task. Every single member of the family can take turns in doing their household chores, especially in cooking. Not only this, the family can save a lot.  Like for example, instead of dining out often especially during weekends, they can just stay at home and cook their favorite recipes. Also, it is healthier to cook your own food in the house rather than buying it from the outside. This is because, we can control the sodium, fats and cholesterol used in the food. Unlike in restaurants, we cannot choose what to put and what not to put in the food we eat.  When your child is already matured enough and is ready to settle on his own, he will no longer have a problem on how to raise his new family.  This is because, by then, he is an expert in cooking in his own little way. And we must put in mind that “behind every man’s success is through his stomach”.

Cooking, therefore, is not really difficult.  It is just a matter of choice and interest. It is also a matter of how much love you put into it in order to produce a delightful and delicious food.  It is also a matter of acceptance, in a way, that you have to accept whatever comment you can hear from the food tasters. What is important is to have that confidence in you and always use your art and imagination every time you prepare and cook food. And most of all, in cooking, you have to consider it a fun and a sort of relaxation and not as an obligation and give your best job on it. In this way, everything will be easy for you.