Procrastination Book

Besides getting some business and books and things in order this month, one of the reasons I booked some time off from my blog was to try and check off a good portion of things I had listed to get done on my very long procrastinator's list. One thing that felt oh so very good to finally do was to write some long overdue letters to our Gospel for Asia kids. One of the little guys had written me 7 times already! He's the one that always says he is praying for us. When we got the latest letter from another one of our GFA kids who said he was waiting to get a letter from us, I finally decided I could put it off no longer. Some very excited kids will finally be getting some letters and nice post cards in the mail.

While I was trying to stay on task and get the other things done (a hard thing for a lifelong habitual procrastinator), I happened to come across a book on...procrastination! Amazing. Thinking that perhaps this could help, I browsed through this book called Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time by Brian Tracy. There were a few helpful tidbits. Like, if you have two difficult important huge tasks you've been putting off, start with the biggest, and work your way down, and don't be tempted to do the little things first. So I went with that advice, and it worked very well. (But alas, I skipped a few so I'm still not finished my list.) The book also talked about things I didn't need or want to know, like how to maximize your 'personal powers' (whatever those are), the Law of Three, and the Pareto Principle (80/20 rule). I also noticed that the author quoted Steven Covey (New Age/Mormon, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People), and Peter Drucker. In fact, in the preface Tracy states that he has immersed himself in their works. Wow - immersion is a big deal. Curious, I thought I would check out further who Brian Tracy is.

An article at Healthy New Age told me that...

Brian has authored over 23 of Americas' leading books on the development of the human potential.
During this time he has also trained over 2 million people in 23 countries. Some of his clients include IBM, Verizon Wireless, Bank of America and thousands of people around the world.

-Brian Tracy - Secrets to Become A Millionaire
www.healthynewage.com/Brian-Tracy.htm

Okay, so he's popular, successful and has written lots of books - but what's with the New Age website? So I got to wondering if there was a spiritual side to any of his other books. I vaguely remembered seeing his name somewhere before, so I checked out Lighthouse Trails Research, and sure enough, they said that in motivational speaker Brian Tracy's book, Maximum Achievement (pg. 179, chapter six, "The Master Power"), Tracy says "many of the greatest thinkers who have ever lived have stood in awe before this power and have written about it."

What is 'this power' is he talking about?

He continues, "Madame Blavatsky, the Russian theosophist, called it, 'the secret doctrine.'" Blavatsky's book, The Secret Doctrine, is one of the foundational books, which under girds the New Age and the new spirituality (see: www.blavatskyarchives.com).
[Source: Lighthouse Trails Research]

Eeks! I was getting advice from a self help book author who looked to this power?

Well that got my attention, blog break or no blog break. As I further explored Tracy's beliefs, I found that he also teaches meditation (which, by the way, is no different than the meditation techniques taught in "Christian" contemplative spiritual formation). Check this out:

Method of Solitude

To get the full benefit of your periods of solitude, you must sit quietly for at least 30 to 60 minutes at a time. If you haven’t done it before, it will take the first 25 minutes or so for you to stop fidgeting and moving around. You’ll almost have to hold yourself physically in your seat. You’ll have an almost irresistible desire to get up and do something. But you must persist.
Solitude requires that you sit quietly, perfectly still, back and head erect, eyes open, without cigarettes, candy, writing materials, music or any interruptions whatsoever for at least 30 minutes. An hour is better.
Become completely relaxed, and breathe deeply. Just let your mind flow. Don’t deliberately try to think about anything. The harder you “don’t try,” the more powerfully it works. After 20 or 25 minutes, you’ll begin to feel deeply relaxed. You’ll begin to experience a flow of energy coming into your mind and body. You’ll have a tremendous sense of well-being. At this point, you’ll be ready to get the full benefit of these moments of contemplation.
The incredible thing about solitude is that if it is done correctly, it works just about 100 percent of the time.
…When you listen to yourself and act on what you hear inside, you are setting out on the road to personal greatness.

-Accessing Your Inner Guidance–Part Two
http://www.briantracy.com/blog/general/accessing-your-inner-guidance-part-two/

So much for procrastination help. I wasn't going to seek any more advice from this book or author. I decided instead to ask the Lord for help, and so far, He's helped me stick to my tasks and finish a good half of my list, which is amazing considering how daunting it was. I've realized that it will be an ongoing process of just doing a little bit every day, and I can still take some time to keep More Books & Things going.

Which reminds me, there's another reason why am I blogging about this book, which I will blog about later (and it has nothing to do with procrastination). Stay tuned...