What does a Manifesting Generator know about procrastination?
Procrastination, oh what a momentum killer! Or maybe not. This Manifesting Generator is starting to see it as a just the messenger.
Want to know how to overcome procrastination tendencies? Read on.
Manifesting Generators are generally fast movers. I even nicknamed them the energiser bunnies of the Human Design System. Following our bliss kind of means we’re hopping all over the place in a non-linear, illogical form… but to us it makes perfect sense (eventually!).
One of the Manifesting Generators skills is to discover efficiencies and shortcuts to speed things up. We also have a double strategy – firstly (and mostly) the Generator part of us needs to ‘wait to respond’ before taking action but we can also utilise our Manifesting part as long it follows the first strategy and then ‘informs others’ before acting.
What I’ve notice through my creative pursuits especially in business, following the spark, or my intuition to reach the next set point, can at times be met with procrastination.
That feeling of knowing you need to be doing something, and it’s important and definitely aligned but still you delay the action required. And boy do I feel the impatience build up within me! It can also come with a side dish of anger and frustration. But…. the more I’ve leaned into this part of me with kindness, compassion and curiosity, I’ve noticed a few things.
Procrastination can be a sign of:
- A Project gone cold
- A disregulated nervous system
- An unmet need
- Avoidance
Let’s review below.
Procrastination: A project gone cold
There have been many a time where I have pushed things forward. I have this real achiever quality within me (one of my top strengths actually) but boy in an energetic sense, it can get in the way.
I have had to unlearn a lot when it comes to following my strategy – to wait to respond. But I have also learned to trust it because, when I follow it, things just seem to work.
In a Manifesting Generator context, it means that I have many tabs (projects) open in my life. And that when a project goes cold or procrastination hits, I need to ask myself if another tab is flashing and drawing me in.
If it is, I am learning to trust that there is a reason behind it. Sometimes it simply means that the original project has gone cold and needs time to simmer, or is missing a key ingredient that I need to find or realise elsewhere. I am learning to trust that when the time is right, the project tab will begin to flash again and I will go back with refreshed energy and insights.
This is something that my business and logical brain finds difficult to comprehend. Yet, that burst of energy that comes when I am lit up is too great to ignore.
So perhaps you’re a Manifesting Generator and find this to be a challenge too or maybe some other part of your chart has a similar trait. Overall, sometimes you just have to let a project go cold, to let it simmer before turning into a magnificent dish.
Sometimes your mind will lead you astray and you will abandon it all together or burn it to the ground – watch this space!! Calling it quits too early is a mistake I have made often and is usually led by my inner teenager part – sometimes it can be hard to know the difference (whether it’s a true sacral decision or a self-sabotaging mechanism designed to keep me small and therefore ‘safe’) and so at times, I will lean into my wise counsel team.
Procrastination: An unmet need
Another great way to overcome procrastination in the moment is to simply ask “What do I need right now?”
I’m amazed at how quickly my body can tell me what I need, and if I listen and act on it, I come back feeling refreshed and ready to go.
Sometimes these needs are small like…
- Setting up my workstation with all my tools and drinks (you know, coffee, water, my favourite electrolyte drink, etc)
- A clean space – my creative mind can go wild at times creating a serious messy desk
- Remove distractions and set a focus timeframe – generally means a 45minute goal, and my phone turned over on silent or away from me.
- A deep breath or a gentle stretch
- A get in the mood song (AJ Hinkling Piano Busker fan over here)
- A notepad and pen to note down any ideas or tasks that pop into my head so I don’t forget them but they also don’t distract me for too long
Sometimes the needs are more about balancing my mental capacity and for that I need to check in on my levels of the following – either across the day, week or month depending on the task:
- Play time
- Sleep time
- Connection time (with others and nature)
- Downtime
- Physcial time
- Time In (think meditation, mindfulness)
You can read more about these elements here. But knowing my daily, weekly and monthly ‘recipe’ has been key to ensuring that I don’t burnout (a key tripwire for Generator types). Learning to play and rest has also been a pivotal learning of living out my Manifestor Generator energy – those times when things go cold, can be perfect times to play and rest so that all the ideas can simmer and key insights and learnings can integrate behind the scenes!!
Procrastination: A disregulated nervous system
Yep, your nervous system can play a huge role in procrastination tendencies. When you feel safe and connected to life you are in the ventral vagal state, where you can enjoy life with ease and flow. The lower parts of your nervous system where fight, flight, freeze live can also be a healthy kick into gear (think problem solving, confronting issues, taking breaks, mindful pauses, aligned choices) but they can also see you spinning wheels and getting nowhere.
The key here is to know your nervous system, your key tendencies and what you need to regulate yourself – whether it’s self-regulation or co-regulation. I even wrote a whole blog on it here.
The key question here is “Am I regulated in my nervous system and do I feel safe to move forward?” If yes, great. Perhaps it’s one of the other findings that will help you in your procrastination compassion journey.
If you don’t feel safe, here are some key questions to ask yourself:
- Where do you feel dysregulated? Is it the task or relationships, world, money, etc that is feeling disregulated at the moment.
- What part feels dysregulated? How can you meet this part and hear its needs? How can you strengthen that part?
- What part of you is unavailable but needed? How can you meet this part and create safety and connection so it can be available?
Overall the key here is to create a sense of harmony, safety and connection so that you can step forward. If my procrastination isn’t a sign of a project gone cold or an unmet need then this is the next place I go.
Procrastination: Avoidant tendencies
And lastly but not least we have procrastination tied up in avoidant tendencies. Now I know I can avoid things for many reasons so here is a little list that I can check in with myself if it shows up in this way (expanded version is over in the procrastination blog here):
- Does the task align with my values
- Does it align with my head and my heart
- Do I have the ability to complete the task
- Do I have the time to complete the task
- Do I have energy/capcity to complete the task
- Am I afraid of failing or getting it wrong?
- Am I self sabotaging and trying to keep myself small?
And lastly, one of the bigger issues of avoidance can come from a lack of discipline and focus. And that is a whole other blog post to write about at another time.
As you can see procrastination is not simply a matter of being lazy or distracted – as my inner critical parent would like me to believe. It’s simply a messenger to look within with kindness and compassion and above all, curiosity.
Meet The Author
Amy Doyle
Amy is a Holistic Counsellor who helps her clients move from this idea that they are broken or missing pieces of their own puzzle, to owning their story, claiming back all parts of themselves and merging together as one team to allow them to rest and be in their deepest expression.
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