Do you Procrastinate?
There are two categories of people: those who admit they procrastinate and those who procrastinate without admitting. Whether we procrastinate in only one area of our life or more, it is virtually impossible to avoid it completely.
One may affirm that procrastination is merely a negative behavior. I consider it is purely inevitable. That’s why it is better to detach from the emotional guilt and instead, start working on prioritizing the most important aspects of your life.
Elements of Distraction
The exterior environment is simultaneously bombarding our senses with a multitude of information. This gets infused directly into our minds (with or without our consent). Our mental critical filter gets filled with useless information, which doesn’t permit us to focus in the right direction. While the mind is busy processing information that we have been served in abundance (without even asking for), our thinking process gets out of control.
Procrastination happens when we lose control of our mind.
In other words, we forget or ignore what is truly important. Instead, we spend our thoughts, energy and time on unimportant subjects.
Doing – Not Doing: ‘Wu Wei’
In Daoist philosophy, the concept of ‘not doing’ is often mistranslated as laziness. But how is this connected to procrastination? ‘Not doing’ doesn’t really mean ‘doing nothing’. On the contrary, not doing means effortless action or, in a more philosophical way, ‘action-less action’. It means to find your inner peace while engaged in any desired task. For a Tai Chi practitioner, it involves the idea of focused energy (mental and physical) by using the flow of energy available in the environment and aligning with it.
Its like trying to lead a boat against a river current rather than with the river. Flowing with the river simply requires to float effortlessly, carried by the current. We will eventually reach the destination by ‘not doing’. Many try to go against the current and give up trying.
Secret Formula to minimize Procrastination
I am afraid I can’t say that I know a secret formula to completely eradicate procrastination. But I do believe that we can work on it, and we can use different food ingredients to minimize it. I propose the formula below, which includes three ideas:
- Energetical balance of your digestion system
- Use foods that help focus your mind
- Use foods that energize your kidneys – the organ of willpower.
1. Understanding the Energetics of Food
On our awesome planet, everything falls under one of the five primordial elements: Fire, Earth, Metal, Water and Wood. Our digestion is the number one generator of vital energy (Ki). When nutrition is carefully balanced, our digestion is efficiently transmuting the chemical energy (from food) into energy necessary for the daily life processes. We believe that food is medicine, and therefore, most diseases should be treated with the most appropriate food. There is no applicable diet formula for everyone, because we are all different, and every day we might require different types of foods.
Nutrition must become our responsibility through education, awareness and listening to our own intuition. The paragraphs below outline a few recommendations on how to reduce procrastination, but these recipes only work after we have managed to achieve a balanced digestion (eating only when hungry, eating what our body needs, listening to our intuition and eradicating unhealthy eating habits). Mastering this topic requires not only reading an article, but the study of several books. I think that, apart from studying and becoming aware of the subject, what is more important is to start experimenting with your food and examine your levels of energy based on the food you eat.
You will gradually become more in tune with your own body. When that happens, you will know exactly what your daily nutritional needs are (see my article on food shopping and self healing).
2. Brain, Mind Focus and Magnesium
Have you decided to eradicate procrastination in your life? Increase your abilities to focus your mind!
The brain needs magnesium to function at optimal levels. Unfortunately, due to nutritional habits and lack of ingredients rich in magnesium, the brain gets insufficient resources of magnesium. Several studies about how magnesium impacts the brain and nervous system have been published, and yet I strongly believe that there should be more awareness about this topic.
Foods rich in magnesium include: dark chocolate, avocados, almonds, cashew nuts, salmon and leafy greens are just a few of some ingredients you may consider to boost your magnesium levels. Supplements are also available on the market, but I prefer getting my nutritional needs through healthy food.
3. Willpower grows in the Kidneys
Kidneys are the deepest source of life energy for a human being. Strong kidneys will lead to a strong and long life. Unlike what we learn in Western medicine, the brain is associated with the kidneys. If one’s kidney energy is abundant, the mind will be sharp and clear, memory will be powerful, intuitive and cognitive powers will be great. The opposite will result into a foggy mind, loss of memory and weak ability to focus.
When the kidneys are full of energy, the body and mind naturally feel a sense of self-confidence and courage. The will to live, to succeed and to survive are very strong. Strong kidneys lead to amazing willpower. Detoxing the kidneys is something we must consider if we want to improve their efficiency. Parsley tea and parsnip root soup are amazing remedies to clean the kidneys from any existing stones or sand.
One of the tonic herbs which is recommended for building the power of the kidneys is Eucommia Bark, famous for its tonifying effects. Eucommia is one of the few herbs in Chinese tonic herbalism that are sufficiently powerful, balanced and broad-spectrum to be used alone. You can find many Eucommia products online here.
Procrastination on Health
The Ki Train Method’s purpose is to enhance our self-healing capabilities. Procrastinating on issues that have a negative impact on our health is similar to pushing the red button of self-destruction. An example that everyone can probably relate to is visiting the dentist. We keep delaying the visit until the pain expedites us to the dental clinic. Pain has always been a good motivation to stop procrastinating on health-related issues. We should not wait for this motivation to appear.
The best part about The Ki Train Method is that it allows creating the snow ball effect by starting small, and increasing the momentum of self-healing, until we achieve perfect health and stop aging.
You may allow yourself to procrastinate on other things in your life, but never on your own health!