President's Column - July 2024
I have never really considered myself to be much of a procrastinator. I have always been the type to start on work right away. I like to be ahead of the curve, not behind. And I am mainly successful with this approach. That is until I became responsible to write a monthly column... Please do not take it personally, I mean no offense!
(Almost) every Wednesday, I speak with IADD CEO Jenny Holliday to discuss projects, progress and to keep current.
A few phone calls ago, I mentioned to her how I had another article on my radar and wasn’t sure what topic I would settle on yet. I whined to her how much it amazes me how quickly another month can go by and how it felt like I had just submitted one. Well truth (1) be told, I had fallen a few weeks past due on turning in an article months ago and have not fully gotten myself back on track with things and truth (2), I procrastinate when it comes to sitting down and putting “pen to paper.”
When I shared this with Jenny, she chuckled and shared how she too was past her deadline for an article she was working on. She also shared that she had recently read a good piece about this very topic. I asked if she would forward it my way and she kindly did. The column was written in a “Dear Abby” fashion in which “In Procrastinating Hell” wrote to “Ask Madeline’s” Madeline Homan Blanchard. She wrote how she struggled to successfully put aside time at work without letting other tasks overtake the time she had set aside for her regular writing assignments. She wrote how she sets time aside on the weekends instead but admits to feeling some resentfulness sacrificing her personal time. She asked for advice on how anyone manages to balance these things. She feared she was becoming a professional procrastinator!
Madeline’s response immediately made me feel a little more at peace for being able to relate so strongly with “In Procrastinating Hell.” Her reply started with “Oh, do I ever have some ideas—because I have lived that hell for a very long time, and so has every writer I know.” For some reason, this came as a total shock to me. I mean, I’ve heard of writer’s block but other than that, I suppose I had made the assumption that other than those times, writers enjoyed sitting down to write. Somehow, I found it very refreshing to read that even people who write as their profession struggle with these feelings.
After making suggestions as to when to effectively schedule some writing time, Madeline also suggested considering other reasons that might be feeding into the procrastination at hand. She asked to consider what she refers to as the “tyranny of the blinking cursor” and explains that writing, simply put, is scary and is hard. She reminded her readers that like anything else, writing may seem to get harder because the better you get at it, the more you realize how much better you could be. She made suggestions of setting up a special place and going through a specific routine to set things in motion. All good advice. Most of which I already follow. Another thing she stated that caught my attention was that every interruption takes a minimum of five precious minutes of recovery. I believe that!
Madeline then referenced research that suggested we procrastinate not because we’re lazy but because we seek to avoid negative moods around a task. She encouraged readers/writers to talk themselves off the ledge by acknowledging them and reminding themselves that these emotions are normal, totally okay and to just breathe. Nobody dies trying to get writing assignments done! Phew! What a relief that is!
When I take a step back, I can acknowledge that I really do enjoy writing to you, Loves! I really enjoy when someone mentions that they’ve read an article or when they take the time to send me a message.
I hope that I am able to take some of Madeline’s advice and get myself back on track or maybe even get back to being ahead of the curve. Perhaps I can keep the momentum going and write another article right now… Perhaps. But then again, there’s always tomorrow!
Wishing you all very productive days!
Jennifer Thoroe is Director of Customer Service & Business Development for National Steel Rule, a steel rule manufacturer based in Linden, NJ, USA. She joined forces with National on November 1, 2018 after working in the industry and volunteering with the IADD for over 15 years. She moved up to NJ from GA in the summer of 2019. One pandemic and three moves later, Jennifer is finally settling into her home near the Jersey Shores with her awesome super-fantastic brother Tom and his even cooler dog, Kelowna.
She has consistently used her time and talents to bring greater value to IADD members, whether through chapter activities, managing volunteers, Board service or overseeing myriad membership recruitment and retention activities. For this, Jennifer received the 2017 IADD Cutting Edge Award, one of the Association’s highest honors. She is the first woman to serve as IADD president.
The President's Column appears in The Cutting Edge, the IADD's monthly magazine.
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