Give Yourself Some Slack

You procrastinate and give yourself just enough time to meet your deadlines—or perhaps you even miss some. You feel like you are pulled along by your deadlines rather than freely working toward them. 

An alternative is to finish your commitments ahead of schedule. This gives you slack in your line and allows you to move with greater creativity, peace, and freedom. 

Taking care of my neighbor’s goat has given me a vivid illustration for the above distinction. When the goat resists being led, his rope is taut as he is dragged along behind me. When he walks ahead, he moves freely and barely feels the pull of the rope. 

This week, I invite you to ask: 

On a scale of 1-7, how good am I at completing things ahead of schedule? In what particular areas do I tend to cut it close? What would change for me if I got better at working ahead? What is one upcoming deadline that I will commit to finishing early this week?

God bless,
Dan