Life for Lazy People – Defining the Vocabulary of Lazy Productivity

 

I'm always aiming for that hammock.

I want to achieve productivity, but I’m also always aiming for that hammock.

What Does It Mean? Lazy productivity means wanting to achieve excellence – because it is not in fact simply laziness, which would be very foolish – but wanting to get there as easily as possible. It means figuring out and doing what is vital for great results without adding in a lot of extra work that does little toward reaching the goal.

Why Should I Become Lazily Productive? If you are a lazy person at heart, you have no need to be told a reason. If you are a full-of-energy overachiever, don’t bother reading the rest of this – it isn’t for you.

What is the Most Important Skill for the Lazily Productive Person? In a word: circumspection. Circumspect is defined as “careful to consider all circumstances and possible consequences: prudent.” Literally, it means to “look around” a thing. The circumspect person uses her mind before her muscles – she thinks before she sweats. She looks at a present circumstance, then “looks around” it, and is able to see where her action or lack of action will lead.

Why Circumspection Matters to Lazily Productive People That’s easy. Effective circumspection means I don’t have to go back and re-do all the time. That understanding of where my action or lack of action will lead lets me figure out the wisest course ahead of time. By following it, I don’t make extra work for myself. Which brings us to…

How Can I Develop Circumspection? Mainly, I have to use all the wisdom I can muster. Need more wisdom? God says He will give it to the one who asks in faith, but understand what entering into a faithful relationship with God entails! Then, I need to embrace the truth that lazy productivity requires some energy, particularly up front. Lazy productivity involves discipline, the kind of discipline that is not always “pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:10) Righteousness and peace. That means knowing I have been doing right and being able to be at peace about it, which is the metaphorical nap in the hammock for me – a real restful rest with no nagging conscience.

In What Ways Can I Apply Circumspection to Achieve Lazy Productivity? That is the fun part. Child-rearing. Laundry. Party-planning. Gardening. Travel. Housecleaning. Paid employment. Volunteerism. Even errand-running. In fact, I can’t think of any activity in which circumspection is not a good idea. The rest of this series will spotlight some areas of life – mostly “little” things – in which some circumspection can let the lazy person succeed in spite of her nature.

What do you think of this idea of circumspection? Or just got a good “word of the day” to share?

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