Why You Should Skip Your Chores (for Now)

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Don’t get too excited, I didn’t say skip your chores forever.

So, I did it again this morning. With one main objective for the day—to finish this post—I gave in to a distraction disguised as important work.

Here’s how this revelation started. About a month ago, I stumbled across a little recognized attribute of chores.

A pure and simple shortcut to procrastination—and I was guilty!

You heard me right… p-r-o-c-r-a-s-t-i-n-a-t-i-o-n. Who would have thought that by doing your chores you might be procrastinating? I mean, hey… you’re getting things done, right? Help me out here Mr. Allen!

Back to this morning, rather than sitting down first thing to finish this post, I was distracted by a box of hangers in my closet. Admittedly, I’ve become a little obsessed with dispensing our remaining boxes of stuff still left over from our move.

So rather than writing first, target in sight, I fiddle-farted around for thirty minutes deciding what to do with coat hangers of all things—just for that feel-good dopamine hit from accomplishing something of miniscule importance compared to my writing objective for the day.

A’HA MOMENT: This is why I’ve been in a writing slump!

Now, it’s time for a trick question—Have you finished your chores today?

If not, you may want to wait. I know, I know, Mom would never approve. It’s just that mom got this one wrong.

I’m pretty sure we all have chores both at home and at work that we need to keep up with. During our “formative” years, our moms helped hardwire into our little heads of mush, that chores trump all other wants and desires. 

She made us feel that all chores are urgent—to be done first. I can still hear that dreaded reply to my pleas, “You can do that when you finish your chores.” I was ever hopeful she would forget… if only once.

It may have taken decades for us to appreciate Mom’s side of the equation. And now I’m telling you we need to let it go.

Why? Doing chores first eats up valuable time, taking longer than they otherwise might have. I credit this and other interesting perspectives on how we let chores derail our important work and play while reading Seth Godin’s post titled of course, “Chores.”

The message here is simple…

Skip your chores until the important work is done.

For clarity of definition, a chore is also any task you’ve convinced yourself that it requires your immediate attention, and performing it has some level of benefit to you, your household, or your business. At face value, it appears to be necessary, if not urgent (thanks, Mom).

Herein lies the biggest problem with how we treat our chores—Chores expand to fill the available time.

For example, many of us use our weekends for running errands, cleaning the house, mowing the lawn, doing laundry, and what have you. Since you’ve set aside the weekend to catch up with all those little day-to-day tasks, what do you end up doing? If you’re like most of us, you blow the whole weekend on chores.

Wouldn’t a better approach be to squeeze those errands in here and there during the week? Then you spend a few extra minutes rather than a few extra hours. Weekend time could be better spent on true weekend things (Hint: remember your friends and family). 

Are you seeing what’s happening here? This is how you find your way back to actually having time to enjoy your weekends.

Doing chores is easy and they make us feel good.

They’re tempting because they make us feel productive while avoiding important tasks. The work that matters to us.

The truth is that if we stop doing chores, we have to do real work instead. The things that aren’t repeatable or proven. The things that are emotionally difficult, creatively challenging, or simply requiring exploration and guts to pursue.”

—Seth Godin

Picasso knew how to get his important work done first—you know, painting!  Grab your seat before you read on…

Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.”

—Pablo Picasso

The chores can wait.

Be untucked.

p.s. If the trash really smells bad, go ahead and take it out. It’s okay.

p.p.s. Know someone who might like this post? Maybe forward it or share it on your favorite social media platform. Thanks… 

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