Have you ever found yourself working happily on the project that you are most excited about only to have a voice in your head reminding you of that one job you put off for way too long? Those projects you procrastinate on consistently? That one job that you set on the bench in the corner of your shop and feel it staring at you throughout the day? In your mind you know that you need to just put down what you are doing and get it done so you can get back to what you love. But as the days, weeks, or maybe even months continue to cycle by, you make an honest attempt to convince yourself that you will do it “tomorrow.”
This is procrastination, resistance, or simply lying to yourself. We all do this from time to time, but for some of us this can become a chronic disease among the best of craftsman. We work so hard to improve our skills and talents, that we tend to put off the types of work that don’t add value to our skill set. In an attempt to be good stewards in our business and remain financially responsible, we take these jobs because of our lack of confidence in our true passion. We tend to look at these jobs as a necessary evil because it must be a sin to turn down work. So we end up taking the project on, knowing in our minds that we don’t want to do them and in turn putting them off to the point that the customer is upset. And we ourselves are upset for having to do them.