(Pretty accurate. Source)
Ironically, I put off some this assignment until it was late in favor of things that were more interesting to me at the time. These are my thoughts on the subject.
First, let me start by saying I agree with the importance of starting. Last semester, a certain pattern emerged with my computer programming projects. I would wait to start on a project, but once I got started I would spend all of my waking hours working or wanting to work on the project until it was completed. In hindsight, this is because once I started the project I got the problem solving juices flowing on how to implement the requirements for the project. Now that I think about it, in my first object-oriented programming class (Programming Structures and Abstractions), I would read the project requirements and thinking about how to implement those requirements made me want to do the project rather than other things. This semester, I will use that same strategy on not only the projects but also the homework assignments.
As I read the article, I could help but notice the claim that "it's easier for our brains to process concrete rather than abstract things." I believe this is true for the population in general but not sure if this is true for each person individually. Personally, I interact more often and am more interested in abstract terms rather than concrete ones.
Another part of the article suggests making a commitment by telling other people and mentions that "research has found that it matters greatly to us whether we're respected by others-even by strangers." This seems to be another generalization on the population but isn't true for every person individually. Respect from others is certainly not all that important to me. For example, instead of mowing the lawn because it was getting long and "time to mow" I would put it off and put more energy into improving my poker strategy because that was more important to me.
These are good ideas for some personality types but most of these ideas don't seem to be the best suggestions for mine and similar personality types. Like the previous article mentioned earlier, getting started on a simple part of the task would be a good strategy for me. As a competitive person, another good strategy for me is to create competitions with myself and see how quickly I can get something done.
Other thoughts
I want to talk a little bit about views on procrastination and laziness. Sometimes people get incorrectly labeled as lazy and a procrastinator. The opinion of someone procrastinating and being lazy depends on whether or not one person thinks there is value to what the other person is doing. Sometimes, it's easy to see the value in what someone is doing. For example, cleaning the house. Just about everyone can see that there is value in cleaning a house, such as keeping things organized and making it less likely to lose something, preventing cockroaches and other critters from coming around, proving to other people that they are a clean person, and other reasons. So a person who spends a lot of time cleaning the house is likely to not be viewed as lazy. However, sometimes the value isn't so clear to the majority of people. Albert Einstein, the same personality type as myself (INTP), was likely labeled as lazy by his peers when he dropped out of school. It took major achievements such as the Theory of Relativity to shed this label. As an INTP, I can somewhat relate to Einstein. Executing rational tasks (ex. writing this blog post...just kidding...kinda) is just not nearly as interesting as solving complex problems (ex. gaining mastery on the topic of personalities and developing my own theories) to improve my own understanding of the world and my life. My best friend, an ENTP, also struggles with executing rational tasks in favor of much more interesting things. In a nutshell, we see more value and are more interested in abstract ideas and theories rather than doing the rational task that provides a clear (monetary) value. We aren't lazy procrastinators, but rather we seek to gain abstract value (developing new ideas and theories) than concrete value (money or other tangible resources). Was this assignment late because I was lazy? Or was it because I was doing something else more interesting?
Another part of the article suggests making a commitment by telling other people and mentions that "research has found that it matters greatly to us whether we're respected by others-even by strangers." This seems to be another generalization on the population but isn't true for every person individually. Respect from others is certainly not all that important to me. For example, instead of mowing the lawn because it was getting long and "time to mow" I would put it off and put more energy into improving my poker strategy because that was more important to me.
These are good ideas for some personality types but most of these ideas don't seem to be the best suggestions for mine and similar personality types. Like the previous article mentioned earlier, getting started on a simple part of the task would be a good strategy for me. As a competitive person, another good strategy for me is to create competitions with myself and see how quickly I can get something done.
Other thoughts
I want to talk a little bit about views on procrastination and laziness. Sometimes people get incorrectly labeled as lazy and a procrastinator. The opinion of someone procrastinating and being lazy depends on whether or not one person thinks there is value to what the other person is doing. Sometimes, it's easy to see the value in what someone is doing. For example, cleaning the house. Just about everyone can see that there is value in cleaning a house, such as keeping things organized and making it less likely to lose something, preventing cockroaches and other critters from coming around, proving to other people that they are a clean person, and other reasons. So a person who spends a lot of time cleaning the house is likely to not be viewed as lazy. However, sometimes the value isn't so clear to the majority of people. Albert Einstein, the same personality type as myself (INTP), was likely labeled as lazy by his peers when he dropped out of school. It took major achievements such as the Theory of Relativity to shed this label. As an INTP, I can somewhat relate to Einstein. Executing rational tasks (ex. writing this blog post...just kidding...kinda) is just not nearly as interesting as solving complex problems (ex. gaining mastery on the topic of personalities and developing my own theories) to improve my own understanding of the world and my life. My best friend, an ENTP, also struggles with executing rational tasks in favor of much more interesting things. In a nutshell, we see more value and are more interested in abstract ideas and theories rather than doing the rational task that provides a clear (monetary) value. We aren't lazy procrastinators, but rather we seek to gain abstract value (developing new ideas and theories) than concrete value (money or other tangible resources). Was this assignment late because I was lazy? Or was it because I was doing something else more interesting?
Agreed, Daniel! That's why, after the Orientation, you can mix and match. The idea is that Week 1 makes sure everybody is starting with the key info about the class and with a plan to move forward (so I pester people about missing items from Week 1)... for Weeks 2 and beyond, you are making lots of choices. I hope you will find interesting options from the range of stuff available. And if not, contact me so we can brainstorm some more options! :-)
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