Posted by: fedex1 | September 5, 2008

Workshop 2 Saying the most important things first (1)

Saying the important things first

 

 

 

 

You were asked at the end of the last lesson to find out what ‘procrastination’ means.

[feedback]

Here is a definition:

The word comes from the myth of Procrustes (Προκρούστης) “he who stretches”, also known as Damastes (Δαμαστής) “he who subdues” and Polypaemon Πολυπαίμων “he who harms. much” a figure from Greek mythology.

Theseus forcing Procrustes to his own bed
 

 

 

Procrustes was a son of Poseidon and a bandit from Attica. There, he had an iron bed into which he invited every passerby to lie down. Procrustes described it as having the unique property that its length exactly matched whoever lay down upon it. If the guest proved too tall, he would amputate the excess length; victims who were too short were stretched on the rack until they were long enough. Nobody ever fit in the bed because it was secretly adjustable: Procrustes would stretch or shrink it upon sizing his victims from afar. Procrustes continued his reign of terror until he was captured by Theseus, who “fitted” Procrustes to his own bed and cut off his head and feet (since Theseus was a stout fellow, the bed had been set on the short position).

People use this idea in science to describe the way that people bend or shape ideas for their own purposes. However, if you move into life you will never find logic growing anywhere, just in the human mind. Life is paradoxical. You will see opposites meeting in life without any difficulty. Life is illogical sometimes, this is how we live it.

     In language this idea of trying to fit an impossible or irrelevant idea to logical speech is known as ‘procrastination’ or ‘beating around the bush’. What irritates us about people who procrastinate is that they are trying to achieve the impossible or the unimportant. They are trying to say something that can’t or needn’t be said, or could be said in very simple ways but for some reason they want to waste our time and not get to the point! Procrustes, of course, annoyed everyone, until he annoyed the wrong guy, Theseus…who stopped his procrastination for good!!!

 
 

 

So here is the question….!!! Is procrastination ever good? To answer this you have to -- ask about which situation we are procrastinating in. Sure, sometimes procrastination is funny:

‘I shall always decide not to decide, unless of course I decide to change my mind’
‘I know what I believe. I will continue to articulate what I believe and what I believe- I believe what I believe is right’.

and sometimes a source of creative reflection and entertainment…

 

 

lyrics:

I don’t catch your drift and I don’t catch your plan
Need to get my thoughts down but it’s getting late
Need to get up now, get my feet on the ground
But the show is so unprepared now
My place so messed up, I tried on some shoes
Should think clear and focus, but I’ve things to do
Glancing at my CD rack, eyes linger on frank
And I must put that check in the bank

Try to put me in a room
Distractionless
(Everything is everything)
Spare me from worse
In the studio, I will finally burn
All the time is all you got)
Tempted to work

Always got something to do, someone to be seeing
Somewhere to be dancing I’m a wake human being
It’s an opportunity, shout ’till you go blue
Unless I wanna do it
Your words go through
Need to buy some cigarettes, can’t put it off any longer
Worked appeal depression
I feel it growing stronger
Maybe when I’m all grown up, I will get it through
But right now I got stuff to do

Try to put me in a room
Distractionless
(Everything is everything)
Spare me from worse
In the studio, I would finally burn
(All the time is all you got)
Tempted to work

Put me in a room
Distraction less
(Everything is everything)
Spare me from worse
In the studio, I would finally burn
(All the time is all you got)
Tempted to work

Gotta get this song down before I leave tonight
But my hair, just does it’s own thing
And I gotta look alright
And I gotta write a chorus, but words allude me now
I have to get this down before I leave somehow
And anyway I be thinkin’ to meet you at the station
Guilty ’cause I should be home
Damn ProcrastinationSo when they ask me later, I won’t tell them how it’s going
But now my head is empty, and the work load keeps on growing

Try to put me in a room
Distraction less
(Everything is everything)
Spare me from worse
In the studio, I would finally burn
(All the time is all you got)
Tempted to work

Put me in a room
Distraction less
Spare me from worse
In the studio, I would finally burn
Tempted to work

Distraction less
Spare me from worse
I would finally burn
Tempted to work… [The last line really says it. Tempted to work.]

[survey: is procrastination ever useful?] 
continued on next blog entry - Workshop 2 Saying the most important things first (2)

                                                         please continue…

 

 

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