March 10, 2020

 

 

Note From Rochelle

 

 

Dear Writers,

 

I’m thrilled to welcome my friend and colleague Sandy Freschi to talk about her unique perspective on procrastination. Just over a year ago, I had a Human Design reading from Sandy, and it changed the way I think about managing my energy. I hope you will appreciate her perspective as much as I do!

 

Enjoy!

Rochelle

 

What If It’s Not Procrastination?

By Sandy Freschi

As I sit here working on this article about procrastination, I’m keenly aware that I’ve been putting it off. While I’ve spent some effort preparing to prepare to write, it’s been extremely difficult to actually flesh out the words in any coherent way.

 

In my world-view that includes a system known as Human Design, there are a couple of very legitimate reasons why someone may want to delay starting or completing a project. What often looks like procrastination is not that at all.

 

Human Design is an energy profiling system that shows you how your body and mind are designed to operate together to experience a fulfilling life. In this article I’m going to attempt to explain some of these energy dynamics to you. If you’ve ever tortured yourself and wasted energy worrying about your procrastinating ways, this may enlighten you to some things that you may not have considered about why you’re putting off what you think you want to do.

 

I’m going to set the tone by prefacing this list with the following phrase.

 

You’re not procrastinating when…

 

You’re working through fear

There are markers within your Human Design blueprint that show the types of fears that you typically experience. Your fear patterns and themes are part of your genetic hardwiring. When you know about the way that you work through your personal fear themes, you can relax and go through your process. Eventually you’ll come out the other end.

It became much easier for me to sit at my desk and type out this article when I realized that I’ve been going through my personal fear process. I’m hardwired to experience several fears when I’m faced with something that’s outside of my comfort zone. The same fear themes consistently arise…fear of inadequacy, fear of failing my responsibilities, and perfectionism. When I identified that I was operating from a familiar pattern, I also recognized the cure: sit down and start writing. Voila! The fear was replaced with action.

 

 

You’re waiting for the right timing

The system of Human Design identifies various ways that your body and/or your mind need to wait for the clarity to know what to do or the energy to get something done. Most people have some sort of waiting strategy hardwired within them that enables them to optimize their personal energy while avoiding mental confusion, overwhelm, and external resistance. There are some rare people who can “just do it” without waiting. But even they are initiating actions when they know internally that the time is right.

 

Are you waiting for the right timing to start or complete something? Perhaps you have a design where you need to wait for emotional clarity before taking the next step. Or it could be that you’re designed to respond to something tangible that gets your motor going and your energy moving in the right direction. You could even be a person with a design that doesn’t really get energized until the right people invite you by offering you their energy that brings out the best in you. Whatever the case, timing is everything when it comes taking the right actions. And while waiting for the right timing is often seen as procrastination, it’s not.

 

 

You’re trying to do something that’s not yours to do

Thirty percent of the people on the planet are not hardwired to do work in a consistent and ongoing way. Those same people, when they don’t know that they have a different way of working, can become very overzealous about getting work done. This can lead to patterns such completing someone else’s work for them, going above and beyond in an unhealthy way, and not knowing when to stop.

 

The other seventy percent of the population are not immune to the dynamic of doing things that aren’t theirs to do. These people have a built-in gut response that can steer them toward the things that are a good use of their energy. But often, they ignore their gut response and do something that they think they “should” do instead.

 

In both cases, taking on responsibilities and work that aren’t meant for you can weigh you down. It feels like drudgery. It eventually exhausts you. And no matter how enthusiastic you were in the beginning or how you feel that you “should” get it done, your body and mind will eventually rebel against what you’ve taken on. You’ll find yourself putting off these things as long as you possibly can.

 

You have unmet needs that need to be met

When you’re not giving yourself what you need per your Human Design blueprint, you will start to lose energy. Your body and mind will rebel until they get their needs met. It will seem like you’ve lost your motivation for what you’re trying to get accomplished. In reality, your motivation is being pulled in another direction that you haven’t yet recognized.

 

Here are some typical needs that you could have (that you may not know you have) according to your design:

Rest. Some people have designs that require them to get more rest than average. Ironically, these are the people who can get overzealous about work. So they overwork (often at things that aren’t theirs to do), then get exhausted and don’t sleep well. They think they can get by on 6 or 7 hours of sleep, no naps, and few breaks. They actually need more hours of sleep, some naps and many breaks scheduled into their day.

 

Multitasking. Other people are designed with the need to multitask and be busy. These people are often told to slow down and focus on one thing. When they try to do that they implode under the weight of their own strong energy field. They may feel like they’ve lost their motivation but they’re actually not channeling their energy into enough activities that keep them moving.

 

Flexibility. And then there are people who are designed to need spontaneity and flexibility. Sitting in one place to complete a long project can literally make them sick. They need to be free to change their environment at a moment’s notice. They need space in their schedule to follow their body’s prompts in real time. When they can’t do this their momentum slows and they lose their zest for life.

 

There are many other ways that people can have needs that they just don’t realize that they have. When you feel like your energy or motivation is stalling and you don’t know why, it could be that you’re struggling against a fundamental need that’s a requirement of your design.

 

 

Consider This

The next time you put pressure on yourself for procrastinating, ask yourself these three questions:

• Am I waiting for something?
• Am I trying to do something that is not mine to do?
• Do I have an unmet need that I need to meet?

 

Human Design won’t help you overcome true procrastination, but it can help you to take pressure off of yourself when there are legitimate reasons for stalling. By learning about your Human Design blueprint you get insight into how you work through fear, how you make decisions that energize you to do what you’re here to do, and how to meet your unmet needs in the healthiest possible way. Most importantly you learn to give yourself permission to be you. When you’re being you, you stay true to yourself. When you stay true to yourself you don’t put off what’s most important to you.

 

About the author. Sandy Freschi is a consultant and coach who helps you to see yourself clearly so that you shine brightly in the world. She uses Human Design and other cutting edge energy and consciousness tools to clear your path and light your way as you discover and live the awesome side of your life. www.sandyfreschi.com