Laziness is a Cancer

I might as well begin this blog with a short entry regarding a constant demon in my life from the days I was but a young boy: laziness. All human beings are lazy, but I think I can be more lazy than others. This is a cancerous habit- one that prevents me from taking risks and reaching my full potential. Oftentimes there are legitimate reasons why I do not perform a specific action- writer's block for instance which prevents me from (or rather, makes it more difficult to) continuing with my written works- whether that be any of these blogs or the books I'm writing, both fiction and non-fiction. However, instead of trying to take these problems head-on, I instead either make an excuse or simply move on to do something else (that something else usually being nothing).

I'm having problems finding a source for a chapter in the book I intend to write on the most critical battles of the world? I huff and just get tired of looking, so I put it on the shelf for a while instead of making a greater effort to resolve the issue.

I can't think of how to progress with my epic novel? I stop paying attention.

The result is a vicious spiral where nothing winds up being finished. These same things can apply to other aspects of life- business, socializing, going to the gym, and yes, improving with women.

Sloth was regarded as a deadly sin for a reason. Put simply, laziness is a demon, if a well-dressed one. That's why it's so destructive. It manifests itself as something that appears harmless, but like a persistent parasite, it slowly saps away your precious life's time, and it is often accompanied by rationalizing excuses: "I just can't think of what to write," or "I can't approach that woman because I don't know what to say." These are pathetically transparent, but we as human beings, and I believe, myself in particular, give into them because they're the path of least resistance.

Indeed this tendency to give into the path of least resistance is so strong that we (and I know myself in particular) often don't even need excuses of the type described above. We just simply give into laziness as a force of habit, putting off our goals to "later" often only to find out that later never comes.

Of course this is not to say that simply wanting time to do nothing is a bad thing. As human beings we definitely need some time to do nothing except that which brings us the most immediate gratification to unwind from our hectic days and the stress in our lives. However, we mustn't let this desire for tranquility on the sea of nothingness take over. It will sap your abilities to reach your full potential and dissuade you from fulfilling your goals. It is a habit that will lead to a cruel destiny.

Laziness must be looked at for what it is- a dangerous desire that must be kept on a short leash. I have often failed to do this and have paid for it in a variety of ways. Motivation to hold myself accountable for this is probably the best thing that's happened to me in 2013 so far.

What is one thing all successful, self-actualized men have in common? Julius Caesar and Isaac Newton couldn't be any more different on the surface, but they do have one thing in common: they didn't let laziness stop them from achieving their ambitions.

Set a permissive schedule for your goals. Adhere to it. And no excuses or sloppy delving into the baser, dangerous desire to do nothing. Laziness work goal-setting motivation