Hey,
The other day I caught myself doing that thing again.
The dishes were piled in the sink, emails waiting for replies… and there I was, sorting the junk drawer like it was a priority mission.
My chest was tight, my brain buzzing, and I kept telling myself I was “too busy” to deal with the important stuff. Truth was, I was busy avoiding it.
I used to believe I didn’t have time to work on the things that would actually improve my life. But when I really looked at it, most of my time was getting swallowed by procrastination and little distractions.
Sometimes it was to keep boredom from creeping in. Other times it was to give my anxiety and restlessness somewhere to go so I didn’t explode.
I’d push off the real responsibilities until the last moment, feeling dread in the background, and convince myself I was drowning in work. But in reality, I wasn’t drowning. I was chasing perfection, thinking about other things or tunneling my way down a rabbit hole.
Here’s the part that surprised me: procrastination wasn’t laziness. It was me trying to protect myself from discomfort I didn’t have the tools to handle yet. My problem wasn’t time management. It was self‑compassion management.
These days, when I feel that familiar buzz of restlessness or that weight on my chest, I try to pause and listen. I’m honest about what I’m feeling and why I’m feeling it. Not in a “I shouldn’t feel this way” kind of way. More like, “Okay, this is what’s here — what’s it trying to tell me, and how can I respond in a way that actually helps me see it and not flee it?”
It hasn’t made life perfect, but it’s made it more honest. And it’s given me a better relationship with myself — which, turns out, is a gift to everyone else in my life too.
So if you catch yourself avoiding something today, maybe give it a second look. You might find it’s not the thing that’s the problem, but the story you’ve been telling yourself about why you can’t start.
Thanks for being you,
Brian