“That sounds like a great idea…I’ll start tomorrow!”
“It’s time to get in shape…We’ll start tomorrow!”
Tomorrow comes…
“Well, I need to plan it out a little bit more. Let’s start tomorrow!” A year goes by…you never started.
Sound familiar?? Tomorrow can be substituted for just about anything. I will do X when _________ (major life change occurs, at the start of the new year or month, when stars align and pigs fly, etc..). Why are we all waiting on tomorrow? Why not fight tomorrow and start today?!
TODAY, we fight tomorrow, and any good fight needs technique. Below are five techniques to help you kick the crap out of the “I’ll do it tomorrow” epidemic.
Become a NOW man(woman)!
A now man is very similar to a yes man, as seen in the move Yes Man – starring Jim Carrey.
For those who haven’t seen the movie: Pretty much, a dude named Carl Allen (Jim Carrey) is a negative person who gets thrown into this program where he has to say yes to every opportunity or task he is presented with, and it leads him down a pretty fun and interesting path.
While you shouldn’t go to the extreme of Yes Man, it is time to start doing stuff – NOW!
I know I struggle with this! I am currently working on becoming a NOW man. Here is the technique: TODAY, not tomorrow, try to do something right now. It could as simple as the examples below:
I need to…
- Take out the trash
- Send that email
- Call that friend / co-worker
I know a work schedule doesn’t’ permit most people to do what they want to do right away. However, if you start with the little things, the bigger things may get a little easier. When you get home from work and you say I need to work out later, instead you will get home and say “I need to work out, and I am going to do it right NOW!”
Try to be a NOW man(woman) today!
Quit over thinking! Freaking start!
Planning can foil just about any plan – ironic, I know. Reason being, you can really never plan too much. There is always another detail or bit of research you could do before you start.
I am telling you to plan less and do more…And that’s coming from a guy who plans and researches EVERYTHING!
End of Three Fitness is my best example of quitting the over thinking and freaking starting something. When I first started this blog I tried reading up on everything I needed to know for blogging. Long story short, there is a ton of information out there and every blogger has their own way you “should” do things. After getting completely overwhelmed with an information overload, I just said, screw it, let’s see what happens. The rest is history. End of Three Fitness has had its twists and turns and changes and a general evolution to what it is now. I have learned a lot and still have a lot to learn. The point of the story is – End of Three Fitness exists! It is here and I write on it weekly, it has readers and a small community. If I tried to learn everything before I started it may very well just still be an idea.
Realize…It’s not that big of a deal.
What are you trying to start? Want to lose weight, gain muscle or do something awesome?
While it may be a big deal to you, no one else really cares, or should I say no one cares more than you :). That’s why you should only do it if you really want to. I believe that everyone should be healthy, but there is a difference in losing 15 lbs. to be healthy and losing 30 lbs. just because others think you should. Or inversely, gaining 10 lbs. of muscle to get stronger or gaining 30 lbs. of muscle just to be bigger than “that guy”.
Now that you know nobody really cares about your goals but you (sounds harsh, but true), you need to realize it is not that big of a deal. If you are scared of working out, it is only because of what you have worked up in your mind.
Time to realize you can do this, you are capable and you will get it done. Also, realize it’s not a big deal and it can be started today. Get out and move!
Hang out with some inspirationals
I don’t enjoy being around people who say and think things like:
- “You’ll always have a car payment…“
or
- “Once you get a little older the weight will come…“
When really, if you live frugally and save money you don’t have to commit a significant portion of your paycheck to the “mandatory” car payment. Likewise, if you eat right and live an active lifestyle, it doesn’t matter what your age is.
The point here is – don’t hang around people who have a mentality of mediocrity. Try to surround yourself with people who are doing things a little bit differently and don’t care what others think. The other people will bring you down and make you think that average is perfectly acceptable. Then you’ll get to the end of your life pissed that you didn’t do more or become better.
Be inspired! Live inspired!
Take baby steps
If you didn’t know…baby steps are, in fact, steps.
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
Lao-tzu
…even if that first step is a baby step…
Since we are fighting tomorrow, meaning we want to do something today, what will your step be? Maybe you feel extremely busy and there is no way you could start something today in the form of action...put simply, maybe you can’t actually squeeze a workout in today.
What could you do???
Let’s start small. Maybe you could lay out your running shoes, socks, shorts and shirt next to your bed and set an early alarm. That is a baby step taken today that will lead to immediate action tomorrow.
Maybe you could grill a chicken breast, slice some fruit and vegetables and put it in the fridge to have for lunch tomorrow. A baby step taken today that may help you avoid fast food tomorrow.
###
If you are sitting there thinking… “Great article! I will get started tomorrow!” …You have got to be freakin’ kidding me!
What will you do today to fight the tomorrow epidemic?
-Jerred
