Just Do It: NOW!

According to relatively recent study findings, not everybody keeps busy. Apparently, 'procrastination' is on the rise. The study to which, I refer began with a five year 'funding' deadline. It took ten years to complete; so much for the study credibility.

In the past thirty-five years, procrastination percentages among Americans have risen from 5% to 26%. These findings may explain why I wait longer in restraraunts, doctor's offices and checkout lines. The study examination also suggests that one-quarter of my friends and family members are going to be late and somewhat undependable!

This procrastination issue was not part of my father's parenting philosophy. He never allowed a crack in the door for any delayed response to his expectations. Example: he never ASKED me to do something; he would simply say, "Hey boy, take the trash out and shake-a-leg!" I immediately understood that my father wanted the trash out of the house, I was to be the courier and the 'shake-a-leg' part was a subtle but firm time reference framed to his expectation; do it NOW! I vaguely recall once raising a question about a directive given by my father. He quickly replied, "Yours is not to reason why; yours is but to do or die." Parents back then were all screwed-up because they never took time to read one of those books on 'how to raise kids.'

Because of those misguided parenting practices, I hold to some strange quirks, still to this day, regarding time, predisposition and accountability. I am on time and I have prepared myself for a desired result by mentally negoiating every imaginable pitfall moving toward that coveted outcome.
When I first started teaching/coaching, I could tell a student/athlete what to do and the young person was both eager and quick to respond and please. As the years passed, I noted more and more the question 'why' on the heels of any request and a pendulum swing from teacher-authority to student entitlement.

I grew up appreciating that school-athletics was extra-curricular for those who held motor-skill abilibities beyond the norm. I believed that values found in self-discipline, teamwork and preparation commitment were the positive residues from sport participation. While serving on numerous IHSA advisory boards, I recall the ever-changing sport philiosophy, which has resulted in multiple 'Class-divisions' to produce more 'state champions.' Sometimes, I believe the tail is wagging the dog.