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I am a procrastinator.

There, I said it out loud.  The kind of thing all of those “Type A” personalities out there would never admit to.  I don’t even like to think I’m a “Type A” person except then I read articles like “16 Signs You’re A Little (Or A Lot) Type A” from the Huffington Post.

And for the past few years, in a lot of ways, I have felt stuck.  I mentioned in “The Lemonade Stand” that I want to take care of my business of life.  I don’t feel that I have.

So what?  What does that matter?  I’ve had a life full of adversity and I’m not perfect, right?

Except that’s an alibi.  One I have lived by for too long.  I suspect there are a lot of us out there with that feeling of being “stuck”.  Where planning out action steps towards our goals is more like a visit to a dentist then feeling proud we’re on a path to something better.

I believe a lot of people know what they want to do.  I’m not sure a lot of us know how to deliver on that goal.  What steps are needed?  What is the actual goal?

My goals might include, “feeling in control,” or “prepared”.  Did that really define what those mean to me?  What does it look like when I’m in control?  Of my own emotions?  My schedule? My To Do List?

So now I want to start putting some structure around this – What does “control” look like?  I want to have bills paid on time and work within a budget.  Okay, good.  HOW ARE YOU GOING TO DO THIS?

ACK!  I can’t just say the words, I have to do something about it!?  Sheesh, I’d rather go watch TV and think about this a little more…few hours later and I don’t have to remember what I was doing.

So this is starting to feel a little more like a corporate Development Plan…S.M.A.R.T. goals, yeah that should work.  Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Results-Focused, and Timely.  Totally sounds like too much work.  SQUIRREL!!!!

Where am I at today?  Where do I want to go? What’s stopping me? What can I do about it?

So I feel stuck, like I can’t keep up with all the schedules and bills and To Do lists and the house and the…you get the point.

I want to feel better about keeping up with these things.  I want schedules visible and figured out a week in advance.  I want bills paid on time and to have a little more money saved for the big stuff like vacations and unplanned expenses.  Chores done on time, mostly clean house, things fixed and finish projects.

Three things are needed; Time, energy, and money.  Usually I can have two of three, but I don’t feel like I have all three.

What can I do about it?  Money is definitely a stopper – If I don’t have the funds, then there’s no way certain tasks are going to happen.  And that also goes back to bills being paid on time.  Then when I’m worried about bills, I feel like I’m out of energy…

So that process just helped me realize my first “getting unstuck” priority is to get help around my bills.  Here’s the best part – I need to remember that I don’t have to do this alone.  Between relying on the Wife Unit for help and a ton of apps out there (most are free), I could start getting this under control.

Now back to the “Type A” thing – When I have a goal in mind, I’M A FREAKING ROCK STAR.

While people sometimes think of “Type A” as being rude, rushed, driven, and all that…I like to look at what it can do for me – Propel me to achieve.  But if I can’t take that step back and look at what I want to do, then I’m just flapping around seeing if anything lands.  Hasn’t worked so far, time to put myself all in.

“Process always helps you find a way, Will is what allows you to go with it.” (I just made that up, gonna write that one down)