What Are You Waiting For? How often have you said, or heard someone say, “I do better with deadlines.” Why is it when you have a goal, the only way you get it done is because it is due tomorrow. In NLP we explore our subjective experience, our reality, by exploring the question of how do we do what we do. In essence NLP is about modeling excellence in all arenas. As we sat through Hurricane Sandy, both Steven and I, wondered why we get ourselves to do something, even when there is no deadline. It was not yet November and I began working on our newsletter. Steve is writing the 3rd edit of our book, The NLP Companion. What gets us to begin a project and work towards completion before the deadline or in the case of the book without a concrete deadline? One piece of getting something done is identifying how you experience the word, “deadline.” When asked this question many of our clients and students answer by pointing to a location in front of them and saying that it is far away. When they are asked, “What is it like when the deadline is tomorrow?” They place their palm in front of their face. Before reading on, do this experiment. Imagine a project you have to accomplish. Imagine it far off in front of you, and notice your feelings about the project. Now imagine the project right in front of your face. How do you feel now? I was recently interviewed for a job for a fitness company. They requested a power point presentation. The representative said it would be happening sometime within the next four weeks, and we discussed what the 90 minute presentation would be about. I began thinking about the presentation, knowing that I didn’t have the date, but knowing that it would be sometime within the next month. I visualized my next four weeks and imagined all the work I had with clients and training. I thought about the pending deadline, any possible four weeks, which could be sooner or later. I experienced the deadline in my face. I made a decision, to begin the power point and within two hours I had completed the first version. Sometimes the delay of starting takes longer than actually doing what needs to be done. Getting started is one of the first steps, but only after I feel the deadline nearby. After completing the power point, I received confirmation of the actual deadline 17 days away. I have time to edit, improve, change and prepare for the presentation. Getting started gives me time to do a better presentation than waiting until the last minute. So what are you waiting for? Put the project in front of you, remind yourself of how this will make things better. Even when you do not have a deadline you can continue to act as if you do. Tell us how you get started and take a project to completion.
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