Immediacy Mindset: the Habit of Doing It Now

          

“Beginning today, I will create a new future by creating a new me.  No longer will I dwell in a pit of despair, moaning over squandered time and lost opportunity.  I can do nothing about the past.  My future is immediate.  I will grasp it in both hands and carry it with running feet.  When I am faced with the choice of doing nothing or doing something, I will always choose to act!  I seize this moment.I choose now.” ~ Andy Andrews

While contemplating on what to write this week, I came across the words quoted above by Andy Andrews, the author of the international best selling book,The Traveler’s Gift. And it perfectly captures the thoughts in my mind about seizing the day, moment by moment. 

In this article, we will examine a single idea on how we can make that excellent quality, a life-long habit.

Meanwhile, let’s explore the meaning of immediacy and its direct opposite first.

To fully understand a concept, one may need to know what the opposite means. So, if immediacy means doing something—or making something happen—at first, at once, without delay. Then, the opposite of immediacy is procrastination, which means to put something off or wait until later before doing something. 

Procrastination is the prevalent trait among majority of people. It has even become a way of life for many of us. After reading this, I hope we can understand the concept of moving fast to making things happen, and as a result, exclude ourselves from the herd of the majority.

Imagine how great our lives will be if we can prompt ourselves to do the things that are important to us now, rather than making excuses to put them off until tomorrow. 

This happens often because it makes us feel good in the moment. We enjoy a temporary relief from discomfort; herein hides the main problem. We are likely to repeat the behaviour one more time. And When we repeat a particular behaviour long enough, it becomes a habit, which can take control of the rest of our lives.

Behavioural scientists say that all our behaviours are learned. So, I believe we can unlearn the ones that are obstructing us and learn new ones that will empower us ahead of the future.

One day, I had an awesome day because I had a lot to do and I did them all. Consequently, I felt a tremendous sense of fulfillment at the end of that day.

This is must be true for everyone I thought. Then I came across a quote that confirms the truth of my hypothesis with the words of Margaret Thatcher, the former Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom,when she said:

“Look at a day when you are supremely satisfied at the end. It is not a day when you lounge around doing nothing; it’s when you had everything to do and you’ve done it.”

After my experience that day, I asked myself, “What if?”

That is,….

“What if I make every day like this day?”

“What if I make this ‘sense of urgency to do things’ a habit?”

“What if I change my thinking about work forever?”

The outcome of those questions has been quite effective for me. And that is why I am writing this article in the hope that others (in need of a change) may be inspired to change the way they think about their work—any kind of work. 

And this is the change anyone seeking progress should make, both at home and at work. 

The superstars like the rest of us sometimes find it difficult to get the right things done but they are invariably able to prompt themselves to fruitful behaviour, on such instances because they have a ‘way’ that makes it easier for them to choose doing something over doing nothing, even when they don’t feel like doing it.

The key question they ask, is, this:

“Is the task important?”

 

And if the answer is yes, they dive in immediately.

Now, I am going to share one simple tactic to getting important things done, on time, every single time.

Dutifully assimilate the concept describe below into your own life and see the effect of its power in everything you do.

REPLACEMENT: ONE SMALL STEP 

This is the strategy I learned from the book, The Now Habit: A Strategic Program for Overcoming Procrastination and Enjoying Guilt-Free Play, by Neil A. Fiore.

The idea is:

“Replace ‘This project (task) is so big and important’ with “I can take one small step.”

This may appear simple. And it is. But make no mistake about its effectiveness. Simple can be powerful.

It is powerful not just because it can make you start doing the right things, right away but it can easily make you do the same tomorrow, and the next. 

In short, it can set you off for a brand new life, making you develop the remarkable mindset of immediacy—the habit of doing it now. 

Lets see some examples of ‘one small step’ in day to day practical applications:

STUDY 

Instead of, ’this book is too big and how long will I take to finish it?’ say, I can read just one page now.

LAUNDRY 

Instead of, ‘these laundries are too many and I will need a whole day to clean them all,’ say, I can handle pint-size now.

DEBT

Instead of, ‘this debt is too huge and can I ever be free of it?’ say, I can pay N1, 000 now.

RELATIONSHIP

Instead of, ‘our relationship is irreparably damaged and it’s of no use trying,’ say, I can call and offer one apology today.

This principle can be applied to almost any aspect of our lives. And if, we choose to change from our default mode of leaving important things until later, to consciously taking the bull by the horns in this seemingly small ways. The eventual results in our lives and the multiplier effects in the lives of everyone around us will be nothing but magical.

I hope that as you are reading this, you are ready to begin doing the things you have been putting off for some time now, one small step at a time.

I am closing this article with the words of Bradley Whitford for all of us to understand the importance and the urgency of now in bringing to life all the changes we have merely thought and talked about. 

Thus, they remain a mirage simply because of one inescapable fact; our habitual hesitation to doing something now.

"Infuse your life with action. Don't wait for it to happen. Make it happen. Make your own future. Make your own hope. And whatever your beliefs, honor your creator, not by passively waiting for grace, but by doing what you can to make grace happen... yourself, right now."