Procrastination

We all do it and we all have done it at least once or twice in our life.

We probably did it when were in school. We’d gather our books and other materials but end up staring at that homework – barely accomplishing anything.

We’d prepare all that we need for that new project yet we don’t even have any clear starting point.

Admittedly, we don’t really mean to do it. Sometimes we simply lack the motivation – the urgency to get things done – or the creativity to produce something we actually love. Other call it resistance. Surely, it’s frustrating and as time passes, the only thing that seems to have made progress is the hour.

It seems innocent at first until the consequences start show. We are forced behind on the output and at the worse, we end up sacrificing the quality of what we produced due to the time we’ve wasted.

Creatives and artists know these instances too well, the feeling of being stuck or blocked. Tough weeks would go by and they would force themselves to produce something almost every day. Some would be good, others not so much – but this is okay. It’s normal to have some hits and misses every now and then. However, what’s not okay is, staring blankly at an empty canvass or screen, cough up, mope and repeat the same cycle over and over and over again.

Design Luck writer and Medium contributor Zat Rana advises in an article

“When you’re stuck, do more”

Though forcing yourself to write a new song or draw another portrait is often seen to be counter-intuitive, action brings something to the table that could help spark artistry.

Majority of us would assume that in order for one to take action, there should be inspiration present through imagination or enthusiasm, when in reality, it’s the complete opposite; the need to act is what forces ingenuity.

This hindsight is expected of with the various misconceptions surrounding breakthroughs and how they are made. Stories like how an apple falling led Newton to discover gravity made it easier for us to fall into thinking that they come naturally.

Truthfully, they do happen yet they often occur sporadically. There’s a huge chance of failing if we only sit and wait for inspiration to strike.

Rana claims in the aforementioned article that action stimulates inspiration more than inspiration stimulates action. A certain song or art piece can inspire us and spark a brand new idea but nothing will come off it until we actually start doing.

The moment we start doing, we gain enough momentum that we become even more energized to continue the process. The more we become invested and engaged in the activity, the more we become inspired to learn, to improve and to finish.

Instead of coercing yourself to do a task of importance half-heartedly, cut loose and let it go. Make a list of other smaller tasks that needs to be accomplished within today and start from there. Go through your emails or clean your room – these seemingly menial tasks can help you gain enough push to create a domino effect to tackle more.

Freelancers who’re fortunate enough to be members of coworking spaces can switch from one work area to another in between tasks. They can sit down by the communal areas to meet with partners and other collaborators or get a private desk of their own for some brainstorming. As they go through their To-do list, they gain enough momentum and end up finally sitting down on that great big project.

Inspired by the concept known as activation energy in Chemistry, these seeming menial tasks once done serves as the base amount of energy needed for a reaction to move forward. You now have enough energy to tackle a task that seemed difficult earlier.

At the end of the day, its core is finding a way around whatever it is that’s stopping you. Give yourself the freedom of having easier alternative and let it help you in finding the right direction.

Feeling stuck is alright, but staying isn’t. So go do something.

In the 2001 American romantic comedy film Serendipity, two strangers are brought together by fate in New York City. Jonathan Trager and Sara Thomas’ story starts at Bloomingdale as they end up buying the same pair of black cashmere gloves. Though both parties are in individual relationships, the feeling of mutual attraction leads them to a restaurant called Serendipity 3. And as the two go their separate ways, fate guides them back together. The two then decides to test where it would lead them, years later.

The very idea of a greater force stringing together unplanned, independent circumstances and situations to bring something great sounds a lot like fairytale to most of us. On certain days, when the traffic is a little less awful or when you got the last stock of the pretty shirt you saw at the mall – serendipity happens to us at least once. Just like luck, its context is vague yet we all believe in its power every now and then.

New York Times contributor Pagan Kennedy wrote an opinion piece called “How to Cultivate the Art of Serendipity” asking for further research on the subject. She firmly believed that it’s more of a talent of finding what we’re not looking for. She further discusses her concept by saying that the original meaning of the word is very far from what we only assume as pure ‘dumb luck’. In its inception, it’s a talent of making discoveries by accident and several scientist have already conducted tests on the originator’s theory.

Kennedy says that by expanding the existing available literature on serendipity, we may be able to create unexpected discoveries in the chemistry lab, the newsroom and even in business. She suggests that by observing and documenting these encounters, we might have a systematic understanding on how it all works and how we can measure it.

By studying its nature, businesses around the world would see that serendipity can be responsible for several innovation, breakthrough discoveries and other enticing outcomes.

Serendipity seemed to play an important role in today’s business industry and the recent years allowed us to witness a handful of attempts in institutionalizing this delicate phenomenon. Those who are one step ahead have articulated how it took place and have created environments that can help cultivate it.

In a Deskmag article, coworking leader Angel Kwiatkowski discussed a book entitled ‘The Serendipity Machine: A Disruptive Business Model for Society 3.0.’ written by Avans University professor for autonomy in art and design, Sebastian Olma. According to her, in the book, Olma discusses how companies can reinvent their culture to become serendipity machines – redesigning their workspaces to become places that are prone to these valuable encounters.

Kwiatkowski says that in essence, the author is encouraging businesses to become more like coworking spaces. She says that upon joining, you instantly become part of a community. By simply taking a seat, your very first interaction begins; people ask your name and what you do. Some even invite you to lunch and when the community manager says that someone is in need of the expertise you happen to offer, you end up with a new gig.

These scenarios aren’t just imaginary instances, it’s a common phenomenon in coworking spaces everywhere. These are the kind of accidents that lead to abundance, emotionally, professionally and often, financially.

And though Olma claims that fixed spaces are flawed, he claims that the level of potential serendipity is limited to the number of members, however, Kwiatkowski says otherwise. Coworking communities are a mere one organism in a large ecosystem, constantly improving for the good of everyone. They don’t isolate themselves from the rest of the world but rather encourages individuals to collaborate with one another.

By the end of the movie, Jonathan and Sara ends up in Central Park ice rink where they went during the evening that they first met with the pair of cashmere gloves. For the first time, in a long time, they formally introduced themselves to one another.

Resisting mob mentality is hard.

More often than not, people get easily swept by the latest trend taking over the internet. Be it the newest challenge or a song that have gone viral. People consciously follow them religiously and those who say they don’t, subconsciously stays in touch.

It’s the prevailing mindset of everyone particularly in terms of modern technology. A year after the much-awaited release of Apple’s Iphone 6, fanatics immediately dropped them when announcements for the newest model made its rounds. It is easy for society to simply drop the old ones to make room for the new ones.

And though it’s hard to believe, sometimes, opting for what’s new won’t go the way we want it to. Instead, finding a way to utilize both the old and new is the best way to go. One great example of this principle would be during the peak of electronic books or e-books in the market.

When electronic reading mediums such as Kindle was introduced to the public, the printing industry was put in danger. Between the years 2008 and 2010 alone, the sales of e-books escalated to 1,260 percent causing a few print booksellers to into bankruptcy. It seemed then that the time that print books is almost over.

But much to the surprise of many, instead of going to an upwards trajectory, e-book sales began to decrease. In the first few months of 2015, it already fell by 10 percent. All the while, the American Booksellers Association expanded to 1,712 member stores in almost 2,227 locations within the same year from 1,410 in 1,660 locations five years earlier.

The Power to Choose Both

Amidst the numerous publications who have gone digital, one company made the conscious decision to choose both.

Penguin Random House decide to expand and update its warehouses as well as speed up the distribution of its books by investing nearly $100 million on the shift from their traditional operations. Some have traced back the inversion to print to the escalating prices of e-book while there are some who said that a handful of bookworms who still missed the feeling of a heavy paperback in their hands. Other buyers have said that enthusiasts have found a way to utilize both e-books and actual books.

In the end, consumers created a middle ground for both traditional and modern tool to contribute to the overall pleasure of reading.

By knowing what both sides have to offer to the situation at hand, we get a better understanding of how the Both/And principle could fit to certain circumstances. Kindle may never replace the feeling of an actual paperback, at the same time, books can never recreate the immediate assistance of Kindle’s dictionary system. Both the old and the new carries distinct individual strengths, hence, having the option to choose both isn’t a bad idea after all.

There are several other existing examples that fortifies the advantages of the principle to always choose both available options. There’s the commercial real estate market who have taken use of it to their advantage.

The innate nature of the world of business to be in constant state of flux have rendered office space providers to become innovative and adaptive to the passing trends of the industry. As modern technology made it much easier for humankind to work anywhere they want, more and more people are turning away from traditional work areas. Pioneers of the new movement found a way to instill the need for an actual office to the newer needs of professionals. Serviced offices such as coworking spaces and private offices made sure that the new generation of startups remained true to the tradition of having their own headquarters. Though they started catering to most remote workers of today, they still managed to aid the needs of the older members of the workforce.

Whether you like coffee or not, we all have to admit that at some point in our lives, we stayed in a coffee shop. Either alone or with a friend, we all have splurged on a cup of latte or frappe and maybe a slice of cake.

Coffee shops around the world are frequented by different types of people. Some have made it a habit to drop by one each morning for their daily caffeine supply or for a quick breakfast. Some visit to meet old friends for some catching up. And there are those who simply want to sit down and get some work done.

From students down to freelancers, the amount of people who turn them into their own personal offices is quite overwhelming. But driving the “coffice” global phenomenon is a scientific explanation why certain individuals love working in different environments.

Researchers from around the world conducted several studies to find out the science behind coffee shop attraction.

Researchers from the University of Chicago says that it starts with background noise. Their study on the correlation between noise distraction and creativity compared the effectiveness of thinking with various levels of background noise. Examining over 300 people, results showed that people hearing moderate ambient noise scored higher on tests and have been rated as more creative by their peers. According to them, moderate levels of ambient noise activates abstract cognition by inducing difficulty in processing. As a result, people’s creative performance is enhanced.

Moderate doses of distraction forces the mind to become more creative. Hence, busy coffee shops are the ideal place to work in because of the noticeable hustle and bustle.

Another factor that attracts people is the walk that they will be doing from their home to the nearest shop. The activity alone can help get your creative juices flowing. A study from Stanford on the positive effect walking has on one’s creative thinking reported that after conducting four experiments, participants’ creative output increased by 60 percent after a stroll – coming up with unique ideas appropriate to the situation given to them.

To put it simply, any kind of increased stimulus could be good to the brain. Scientists from the University of California says that changing what a person sees, smells, feels and hears can increase their creativity. Chances of coming up with better ideas are higher and concentration on tasks will be improved.

A change of scenery brings a lot to the table, this is further supported by the strong presence of coffee shop attraction to modern day workers, but are these places really that effective?

Concrete proof have already been laid out before us; the spontaneous change of workspace location can result to fresh ideas but it’s also important to take into consideration the amount of factors present contradicting the coffee shop attraction.

One strong predicament is the unreliable internet connection. The public wifi cannot guarantee its visitors secured connectivity. And though there’s the option of paying for it, the chances of it being slow and spotty is still high.

The large volume of strangers surrounding you increases the inherent dangers of theft. Paying no attention to your belongings, even for a split second, is unsafe. Moreover, there’s the social disruptions they bring and the logistical problems of finding the perfect spot.

But despite of the drawbacks, patrons now have the option of getting their daily dose of caffeine while increasing efficiency in one place without over spending too much.

Integrating the vibe of a home and the ambiance of a café, coworking spaces are made for professionals and even students who wants to work in a different environment.

Emphasizing on the importance of collaboration and building community, its open layout allows members to interact with one another in the most spontaneous areas of the office. From the communal areas that you share with the rest of the group to private offices and desks for those in need of privacy.

These modern offices offer anything an employee could want and need for a healthier work day – from free coffee down to workshops and events that help hone their skills.