What if Laziness is Actually a Gift?
“Ugh! I’ve got to get up and do something. I’m going to play one more level, and then I’m going to put down this stupid phone and get to work.”
How many times have you said something similar to yourself. You’ve got a to-do list a mile long, and you can’t get yourself to do a single thing listed on it. You keep telling yourself you’re going to get on it, but somehow you never do.
What’s going on? Are you really the world’s laziest person? (Spoiler: No, you aren’t.)
Your laziness is actually a gift. Please stop beating yourself up and take a moment to appreciate the gift.
So often people, especially business owners, set big goals for themselves. This is a really good thing. Then, after setting these goals, they prod themselves into action mode. They are really excited about the goal and eager for it to manifest, so they automatically want to get to work.
While that might make sense on the surface, it’s actually missing a key step, and here’s where the laziness comes in. Here’s what most people do:
- Create a big goal for themselves.
- Get to work in pursuit of the goal.
What’s the problem? If you follow this method, you’re working against your current beliefs and expectations. You haven’t taken the time to get lined up with your goal before you get into action mode. Now, everything you do, every action you take, you are battling against your own internal belief system. It’s not only unproductive, it’s exhausting.
No wonder you don’t have the energy to do anything but another level of Candy Crush.
I remember a time a few years ago when I would get up, get my kids to school, go to the gym, and come home exhausted. By 9:00 AM I didn’t have energy left to do anything, let alone tackle my big goals. I was just barely getting by doing the least amount I could.
As I started to reflect on what was going on, I realized that I had done exactly what I outlined above. I made a big business decision to do a “road trip” of events across the country. Then, I got to work marketing the events. It was a scary decision because I was putting myself out there in a bigger way than I had before, and I was on the hook for all the travel and event expenses, no matter how successful they were.
I had done step one: create a big goal. That’s a good thing. But then I made the mistake that I see so many of my clients make: I jumped right into action mode.
I hadn’t taken any time to line up with the new goal I had set for myself. My beliefs and subconscious programming didn’t support my new goal. My expectations weren’t lined up with my new goal. So instead of being energized and eager, I was exhausted and lethargic.
I backed off of all the action to fill my events, and instead focused on the most important work: lining up with my new desire. I spent time each day living those events in my imagination. In my journal, I scripted out what I wanted them to look like. I saw myself in the front of the room enjoying my connection with my attendees.
After a short period of time, I saw myself as someone who traveled around the country doing workshops. Once I had that picture in my head, I couldn’t wait to get to work making it a reality.
I realized that taking action from a place of fear, worry, doubt, or disbelief was the worst possible thing for me to do. Action driven by fear can never produce the results I want.
That’s true for you as well. My lethargy was forcing me to slow down my action so I could regroup. I was able to get off the long, slow, difficult, exhausting path and get on the easy, fun path because I was lined up with my goal.
That’s what your “laziness” is trying to tell you to. Maybe the path you’re on right now isn’t the path to your goal. Maybe you’re relying on too much “effort” and not enough “expectation”. If so, laziness is exactly what you need to slow down your momentum so you can change course.
The easy path to success looks like this:
- Create a big, exciting goal.
- Line up your beliefs and expectations with the goal.
- Take inspired action.
When your beliefs are lined up with your desires, there IS an easy path to success. It will light up before you. It will be fun to take action. Until then, use your laziness as a sign that it’s time to stop doing and start imagining.