Lucas Graham
There’s no way around it: if you want to succeed in this life, you have to get moving.
Some may have more than others, but the bottom line is that everybody has potential–yet people live and die every day having never lived up to it.
Don’t be like everyone else.
You have one life to live; it’s time you own your autonomy.
Live your days with assertiveness and vigor, rather than idle, stagnant monotony.
Once you thoroughly break out of certain habits, you will never look back.
In this article, I’ll go through the typical behaviors of lazy and unproductive people.
If these signs sound familiar, know it’s time to make fundamental changes.
Let’s get to it!
1) Frequent inactivity
We all deserve regular, substantial breaks–or we risk getting overly stressed and burnt out.
But when ‘doing nothing’ becomes the predominant theme of your days, consider it time to change things up.
Like anything in life, when you spend an excess amount of time on passive activities, this will be detrimental to your mind and body.
When I say ‘passive,’ I mean things like bingeing Love Is Blind Brazil; mindlessly scrolling through social media reels or Tweets for hours at a time; or day drinking every afternoon.
You get the gist.
I mean, there’s a time and place for all the latter activities… but remember, your time on this planet is finite.
By being frequently inactive or participating in empty pursuits, you’re sacrificing valuable time and energy.
2) Chronic procrastination
My cousin Jeremy is one of the smartest, most creative, and interesting people I know.
He’s a walking encyclopedia… even a Renaissance man of sorts.
But he’s also one of the worst procrastinators I’ve ever known.
He’s in his fifties and has so far lived a life filled with wasted potential.
He is well aware of it too; he has rightfully labeled his crippling procrastination as an ‘illness.’
Through the decades, he has squandered countless opportunities because he was too busy idly texting people, watching TV, or strumming his guitar rather than being proactive.
He has let down many close to him in the process; most importantly, he has let himself down.
If you want to go places in life, procrastination will never be aligned with those goals.
Real talk.
3) Avoidance of planning
Sure, you can wing it through your days with minimal planning… but with this approach, there will always be a ceiling for your success in life.
Planning matters.
Unless you’re extraordinarily lucky, this is just how life works.
You can have all the lofty goals in the world but without systematically plotting your route to get there, you will never make it far.
And the opposite is true: if you have a clear, organized timeline and plan, you’ll always be in a prime position to achieve great things.
So if you want to open a business one day, get that promotion, or win an Olympic medal, don’t expect these things to just land on your lap.
You will need to take concrete steps to get there.
Without the latter, you’ll have no real direction, aimlessly wandering through life like a headless chicken.
4) Putting in minimal effort
My ex was a bit of a lazy person–a quality that certainly spilled over to how she approached our relationship.
She grew up spoiled by negligent parents who pretty much gave her whatever she wanted to compensate for their perpetual absence.
This ‘easy’ upbringing meant that later in life, even minor tasks would feel like hard work for her.
She never had to work to live, indoctrinated by entitlement.
So she would do the bare minimum to get by.
She hated the prospect of having a job and would quit the moment things got mildly challenging.
When we lived together, she never wanted to do anything, perfectly content to lie in bed and scroll through her various social media accounts.
When I would suggest doing something spontaneous, say going on a road trip or even going out to dinner, she would show little interest.
After all, leaving the house was work in her mind.
Once the honeymoon period wore off, I found her attitude to be unsustainable… and let her know.
We didn’t last much longer after that. Hopefully, she has since found her way. I do wish her well.
5) Constantly making excuses
The go-getters of the world tend to embrace their mistakes and shortcomings.
They firmly understand that falling short is a perfectly normal and healthy part of life… as long as they try their hardest, there is no shame in it.
It’s how you bounce back that will inevitably define you.
Many lazy people don’t seem to share this sentiment.
Rather than admit their shortcomings and return stronger, they’d rather deflect blame and make far-fetched excuses for not meeting responsibilities or commitments.
They’re unwilling to admit that they need to make changes internally, instead opting to seek out someone or something to blame.
Not good.
6) Resistance to change
If there’s one thing I’m certain of in life it’s that change is constant.
Thus, being open to change and progress will always be in your interests.
People who excessively stick to their old ways, because ‘that’s how it’s always been done,’ are doing themselves a major disservice.
Nobody wants to be left behind… but if you refuse to adapt to new conditions or technologies, or alter routines, even when these things lead to improvements and greater efficiency, being left behind is a near certainty.
I mean, think of the most innovative companies in the world.
Do you think they’d achieve such towering heights of success and mind-blowing ingenuity by never adopting new methods?
I think you know the answer. Be your own world-class company.
7) Neglecting health and well-being
I won’t lie: I used to find it mildly annoying when I would see posts of people’s daily fitness routines on social media.
Then I realized that I was mostly annoyed because I was exceptionally out of shape, and seeing their posts made me feel guilty.
When I finally got in gear and hit the gym, my perspective on exercise (and health in general) changed.
I realized that everything is connected…
Never exercising, maintaining a diet consisting of chicken tenders, ranch, and soda, and getting three hours of sleep a night will affect your morale in life–which will almost always contribute to lower overall productivity.
Self-care matters.
When I had that realization, only then was I able to gather to resolve to break the cycle and eventually thrive.
If I can do it, so can you. I guarantee it.
