Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

Does panic create focus? Perhaps. Perhaps some of us would just rather avoid panic.

I saw something silly this morning on some society media site. It read:

I don’t procrastinate. I simply wait until sheer panic improves my focus, It’s a highly refined strategy that I have been perfecting for years.

I have known people who lived this. If you didn’t do everything at the last minute in an adrenaline rush, you didn’t earn your pay. Just like the kid in school who started a two-week assignment at 10 p.m. the night before it was due.

I guess there is something wrong with me. Plan the work, work the plan. Work at a steady pace. Avoid panic. Enjoy yourself, work hard, do a good job, and enjoy yourself.

Yes, things happen that are out of our control. Yes, we have to adjust and make up for lost time. Sometimes those things happen near the last minute. Sometimes is some of the time—not all the time. Sometimes is not a plan and not a strategy.

I may prefer to do it all at the last minute “pulling an all nighter.” I am not the only person involved. Others have family commitments. My panic does not serve their families. Let’s do better.