Why do we wait?

I just completed a self paced course on Orthopedic Massage that I began over a year ago. It’s not that it took over a year to complete the coursework, I just kept putting it off for one reason or another until it seemed overwhelming. When I found out about another course that I wanted to take, I told myself that I was not allowed to start that course until I completed the first one. So I figured the best way to get it done was simply to start.

The assignments were challenging and involved a lot of critical thinking, but I loved the information and the process. As I got deeper and deeper into the case study, I couldn’t stop. I felt like Sherlock Holmes unraveling a mystery. Once I put my mind to it, I was able to complete all of the assignments in a little over a week. Yes, that’s right, what took me over a year to start got done in a little over a week. When I got my grade (an A) I asked myself , “Why did I wait so long to do that?”  I’ve always been a bit of a procrastinator, not because I don’t like to learn or complete assignments, but more because I am easily distracted if I don’t have a deadline. Deadlines are my friend, they keep me on track. If I don’t have a deadline I tend to let things go until tomorrow. I saw a funny meme with an image of a sunset and the words: Tomorrow- a mythical land where 99% of all human productivity, motivation and achievement is stored.

The funny thing about procrastination is that it’s not just limited to things that we think of as work. How many times have you said something like “I’ve been meaning to try that new restaurant.” I can’t tell you how many times a client has come in to the office in pain and said to me, “I’ve been meaning to come see you for weeks.” My officemate, Dr. Brian has a great picture hanging in the bathroom of cartoon depictions of things often heard and seen in a chiropractic office. One of the frames shows a character whose torso is twisted like a corkscrew while the chiropractor asks the receptionist, “Why do they always wait so long to come in for an adjustment?” The fact of the matter is that we all get distracted by life and if we don’t have a “deadline” we will put things off to that mythical tomorrow, or until we’re in so much pain that we can’t put it off any longer.

So with something like a massage, what’s the “deadline” that is going to keep you on track? It’s called an Appointment. I always say, “It’s easier to cancel an appointment than it is to schedule one.” Most of my clients who are good about staying on a routine of regular massage always leave the office knowing when their next massage is scheduled, whether it’s next week or next month. I have people who I see regularly that are in my appointment calendar through the end of the year. Things come up and appointments are sometimes canceled or rescheduled, but knowing you have an appointment will keep you from getting to the point when you desperately need an appointment. And with the online scheduling it’s easy to keep track of them. Did you know that when you book your appointment online you can upload it to your Google or iCalendar?

So give yourself a wellness “deadline” and schedule your next appointment at Connective Touch Therapeutic Massage today. In the words of John G Miller, motivational speaker and expert on personal accountability, “Let’s take care of the little things while they’re still little.”