Rebuilding Series: Hit the Start Button. By Marshall Lestz
![Rebuilding Series: Hit the Start Button. By Marshall Lestz](https://www.dojlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Start_Button-1024x1024.jpg)
Rebuilding Series: Hit the Start Button. By Marshall Lestz
Good Morning Everybody,
A couple mornings ago, I thought my wife might want some hot tea, so I put water in our electric urn and fired it up. I told her I was boiling some water for her, and a couple minutes later I heard her call out from the kitchen, “I thought you said you boiled water for me.” I said, “I did!…. Oh wait… Aw man, sorry. I never hit start.” Apparently I pressed the “boil” button, but with our urn you also need to hit the “start” button for it to actually do anything.
So yes, I officially botched the act of boiling water, but the good news is, it led to a Rebuilder idea!
The idea has to do with those words I blurted out to my wife: “I never hit start.” It occurred to me that these words might be a great way to help us overcome procrastination. Maybe the way to achieve our goals and daily tasks ISN’T by focusing on finishing them, but by focusing on STARTING them. All we have to do is “hit the start button.”
Think about it– Starting is way easier than finishing, so there’s a lot less mental resistance. By breaking the job into one tiny act– the act of STARTING– we don’t get caught up in the DREAD and ANGST that often comes when contemplating the whole task! You know how it is, we often start thinking how difficult it’s gonna be, or how un-fun it’s going to be, or how long it’ll take, or all the other stuff we’d rather be doing. Those kinds of de-motivating thoughts buy us a first class ticket on the Procrastination Train. Departure time: Never. Destination: Nowhere.
So let’s jump mental tracks and focus on simply starting. If the sink is full of dirty dishes, just pick up one dish. If you need to go to shul but don’t feel like it, just pick up your car keys and walk to the door. If you need to apologize to someone, just pick up your phone and dial. Hitting the start button gets everything going! It builds momentum and the train starts moving! Our yetzer tov (our positive inclination) kicks in and says, “That’s what I’m talkin’ about! This is good, we’re makin’ progress, we’re moving forward!” And while we may not enjoy the thing that we’re actually doing, we will still feel GOOD that we’re doing it.
The Mishna in Pirke Avos says: “You’re not required to complete the task, yet you’re not free to desist from it.”
Hitting the start button shows that we’re not desisting… It shows we’re in the game, we’re invested and we’re making progress! (And for me, it even shows my wife I know how to boil water.)
Have a “Hit the start button” kind of day everybody,
Marshall
Keep on Building!
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