Avoidance and what to do about it

The past couple of weeks, I’ve noticed that I’ve been avoiding several daily items. Catching up on paperwork, practicing any more than bare minimum and running all come to mind. I find myself doing other things (like Christmas shopping...) when I really should be prioritizing and getting work done.

Other than the obvious chore that paperwork is, practicing and exercise are my stability points. No matter what else happens in my life, I know I can always count on music and fitness to keep me sane.

Avoiding the paperwork made me realize why I’ve been avoiding the other two: overwhelming inconsistency. With the best of intentions, my plans have overwhelmed me. So I need to start somewhere to get back on track.

I’ll start today by simply working. Take a half hour to work on paperwork, break my practice down to focus on a short term goal and just get my workout done. I feel like life has gotten in the way a lot lately, but really it’s just been me.

For those looking for ways to be more productive and to minimize your chances of going into avoidance mode, visit David Allen’s site. He’s got lots of great tools available on his site to help you keep things in perspective.

If you need help figuring out how to break down your career goals (or music goals) into manageable chunks, check out Astrid Baumgardner’s site and blog. She is an excellent professional coach who has helped artists figure out their path and the steps they need to take to get there.

Get to work!