Shirley Chisolm was quoted as saying, “You don’t make progress by standing on the sidelines, whimpering and complaining. You make progress by implementing ideas.”
In 2020, I started the process of certifying my business to help me qualify for set-aside money. Set-asides include historically underutilized, minority-owned, and disadvantaged categorizations. Millions of dollars are set aside for these designations yearly and they provide those who qualify, a leg up in the competitive world of government and corporate contracting.
As a minority-owned, historically underutilized business it means the world to me to have these considerations. They offer needed assistance in the unequal world of business.
With the recent 6-3 ruling against Affirmative Action at Harvard College and the University of North Carolina, the end of these distinctions in every sector could be near. The ruling shifts away from the 2003 decision in Grutter v. Bollinger which upheld the University of Michigan Law School’s use of race in admissions (access this link and learn more, at CBSNews.com).
Fast forward to present day and I am still in the process of certifying my company. I am definitely side eyeing my past actions of complaining and failing to implement while taking time to reflect and learn the important lessons that procrastination can reveal.
As a recovering, overly exhausted professional I’ve shifted the way that I work to be more intentional than exhausting. This started with the deliberate action of giving myself permission to experience life, love, work and learning differently, on purpose. To quote my friend Dr. Ebony Stone in her latest blog post entitled, Faith Without Works is Dead, “As black women we are known to work. We are taught to work. Work is what we do. Often being referred to as “strong”, being the most educated demographic in the country, and overcoming the constant struggle that is inherent with being a black woman in America…we KNOW how to work. We work without even thinking about it most times. But faith…that is a different thing.”
I was definitely doing the work to get certified, but what I’ve learned about how procrastination shows up in my life is that it includes taking on too many projects at once and putting the needs of others in front of my own. These two factors played heavily in my inability to successfully complete the process, back then.
With each intentional action that I take, I am learning a valuable lesson about energy. Sometimes all you need to do in order to activate your faith is make the first move, even when you are unsure of what that move should be. The energy and momentum that is created from trusting that things will work out in your favor, and then taking the first step forward create the perfect breeding ground for miracles to happen.
So what can you do to implement when things seem hard, and procrastination gets in your way?
First, activate your Faith and secondly, Go!
Start by giving yourself permission to experience life differently and then activate your faith for forward progression.
Of course, I have some regret about not moving forward with my certifications years ago, but by giving myself a little grace, I can confidently say that I would not have been capable of moving forward in the world of certifications at that time.
In my case, delay is not denial, and I am purposely moving forward to achieve my goal this time around.
Coach’s Corner
To the overly exhausted professional, procrastination often shows up as missed deadlines, analysis paralysis and indecisiveness. This does not mean you are unqualified to perform the task, it could mean that you have too much on your plate to proactively think through the complete process.
Tips to Move Forward
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Review your list of responsibilities and make a conscious decision to reposition lower priority items to the bottom of the list
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Cancel all unnecessary or redundant obligations
Last week I canceled two meetings which were nothing more than distractions for me. I was able to complete a few more pressing tasks and end my workday a little earlier for some much-needed self-care time.
Procrastination can also have you operating as a novice when you are clearly a subject matter expert. Come back for more on that topic next week.
If you operate a small business and would like to learn more about the certification process, I am a member of an awesome organization called Queen City Women in Business. The mission of the organization is to make the certification process easier for women in business to connect & collaborate with local city & corporate programs & opportunities through access, education & events!
Use my affiliate link to take a look at all we have to offer.
Let’s Work Together
Visit my website at www.originsofpeace.com for additional support to help you move from exhaustion to intention in every area of your life.
