“I’m lazy” is a thought. Not a fact.

“I’m lazy” is a thought. Not a fact.

“I should be doing more” is a thought. Not a fact.

“I didn’t get enough done” is a thought. Not a fact.

“Lazy” is not an objective description of who you are as a human being.

Neither is “unproductive.”

They aren’t even objective descriptions of your actions or inaction.

Here’s how I know:

Because some of the hardest working women I know call themselves lazy all the time. They constantly tell themselves they should be doing more. That they aren’t doing enough. (I used to be one of those women, and I worked ALL. THE. TIME.).

But other people don’t think they are lazy.

Other people think the opposite. Other people can’t believe how much they do. Other people are in awe of them. (Or maybe other people actually don’t have any thoughts about their productivity at all.)

The person telling themselves they are lazy is the constant in that scenario.

They are the same person, doing the same amount of things, but they and others around them have vastly different beliefs as to whether they are lazy. How productive they are. Whether their actions or inactions have any meaning at all, much less what that meaning is.

We tend to use the term “lazy” or “unproductive” or use some amorphous definition of “enough” against ourselves when what we actually mean is that we feel unmotivated. Or tired. Anxious. Overwhelmed. Exhausted. Bored. Dejected. Afraid. Ashamed. 

And we feel that way for some reason that is completely unrelated to the factual amount of how much we are doing or how worthy we are (and instead is tied directly to a thought we are having about ourselves or something in our life).

Because laziness (and the moralization of the term) isn’t a fact. It’s a thought. A subjective human construct.

The idea that you have to be productive to be a valuable human isn’t a fact. It’s a thought. A subjective human construct.

The idea that you have to earn rest, relaxation, and leisure isn’t a fact. It’s a thought. A subjective human construct.

Those constructs can be deconstructed.

Follow along this week - I’ll be covering: 

(1)    Why you think laziness and lack of productivity is a bad thing

(2)    Why this line of thinking doesn’t serve you

(3)    How to start deconstructing this line of thinking

P.S. On a related note because of this laziness indoctrination we get, we tend to lead really busy lives. Overly busy. If that’s you, check out my 10 Ways to Be and Feel Less Busy: https://mailchi.mp/jenndealcoaching/10ways