I agree that feeling guilty due to the feeling that you should be doing something is harmful rather than helpful. Feeling guilt over procrastinating has only ever made it worse for me. I agree that such implicit beliefs about what you ought to be feeling are best gotten rid of as quickly as possible.
However, I am not so sure about replacing it with can. “I can do my thesis” does not make me feel anything. Rather, I like to ask myself what it is I truly want to do, and then the answer I give myself is “I want to do something with my life, and right now that means I want to finish my thesis”. Want seems much stronger to me than can.
I’d write more but I should stop procrastinating on Less Wrong and go back to doing my thesis. I mean want.
I agree that feeling guilty due to the feeling that you should be doing something is harmful rather than helpful. Feeling guilt over procrastinating has only ever made it worse for me. I agree that such implicit beliefs about what you ought to be feeling are best gotten rid of as quickly as possible.
However, I am not so sure about replacing it with can. “I can do my thesis” does not make me feel anything. Rather, I like to ask myself what it is I truly want to do, and then the answer I give myself is “I want to do something with my life, and right now that means I want to finish my thesis”. Want seems much stronger to me than can.
I’d write more but I should stop procrastinating on Less Wrong and go back to doing my thesis. I mean want.