Go ahead, be honest. Are you scrambling today to give unto Caesar what is Caesars? Oh, who is Caesar you might be asking, he is the modern day tax man. Each year on this day our taxes are due. You know, the money you work for that is taken out of your paycheck to pay for programs, most of which you wouldn’t ever fund on your own if it weren’t for the forced extraction from your paycheck. That is an discussion for another day, let’s deal strictly with today, and the looming deadline that is occurring tonight.
One hundred and five days ago we went from 2018 to 2019 and with that the closing of the 2018 tax year. One hundred five days ago you knew that come April 15, 2019 your taxes would be due. Perhaps you were owed money back so you filed early, and if so I applaud you. Perhaps you owe over and above what was already taken, so therefore you are waiting for the last possible minute to pay, nothing wrong with that either.
Todays lesson comes from those who don’t know if they owe or are owed, the ones that are scrambling today to get done what they’ve known needed getting done for the last one hundred and five days. This lesson is for the procrastinators amongst us.
STOP!!!
Stop procrastinating. Get done what you need to get done. And “No”, I’m not just talking taxes - I’m talking about all the things in life you leave up to the last minute and then find yourself scrambling to get done.
Planning proactively and managing your time is essential for success in life, constantly waiting until the last minute to get things done creates needless stress, worry and anxiety.
Why put yourself through that?
Here is the challenge for this upcoming week. First off, if you haven’t finished your taxes get them done. If you have finished your taxes I encourage you to take a few minutes and plan out your week. Your phone - yes, even you non-iPhone using people out there - has an amazing thing called a calendar and some form of a reminders app. Put the technology to work for you. If your phone alerts you every time a friend or family member posts some mindless drivel on Facebook of another social media app but doesn’t alert you to upcoming events and meetings, YOU ARE DOING SOMETHING WRONG and your priorities need to be adjusted.
Planning and anticipating upcoming items make for a less stressful life and gives you the ability to be alert to opportunities you most likely are missing right now given the fact you are always scrambling to get done what needs getting done in your life.
Make today, tax day 2019 the day you start planning proactively and with intention.
I promise you the benefits will be worth it. Living with intention requires planning, and that includes planning your days, weeks and months. Now go forth and start planning out this upcoming week. You can report back next week how you did, but until then have a great day and a great week.
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