Undelayed gratification

... doesn't actually feel that great.

Today, my alarm clock went off at six. I turned it off and went to bed again. When I woke up the second time at half past eight, I started watching YouTube. I didn't start writing before 10:18. That's almost three hours of wasted time.

There's a saying that time you enjoy wasting isn't wasted. But I didn't enjoy it. It was just a way to put off starting the day. Once I get started, everything's fine. But on some days getting started is easier said than done. One simple trick I know is to count to five and just get up. Whenever I'm using it, it works. But with each minute I waste I want to use it less. Using it becomes an acknowledgement that I could have gotten started two hours earlier.

Delayed gratification is a hard sell. Doing it will probably never be easy. But it becomes so much more desirable once you realise how gratification feels much better when it's earned.