The Fallacy of Future Self (or Recursive Procrastination)

Do you have a "future self"? You know, it's you, but in the future -- the guy who the present you piles so much crap on that he'll never dig himself out? Yeah, that guy.

The problem? He doesn't really exist. Thinking that he does exist is fallacious. I'm talking about procrastination. Any time you tell yourself "Oh, I'll do it tomorrow", you're giving future self a task to do. That sounds fan-freakin'-tastic to present you -- you can relax and do what you'd rather do (or worse, do nothing, like veg' in front of a Three Stooges marathon), resting assured that future you has it all covered. It's great!

But, you see, your plan goes awry when tomorrow comes, your chariot of laziness turns back into a pumpkin and, by some dark magic, future self magically morphs into you (or is it the other way around?). Future self always becomes you -- and you're a procrastinator. By the the transitive property, future you is also a procrastinator. You can see where this is going: you never get anything done, future self is you, so, still, you never get anything done. It's recursive procrastination.

You're never going to get anywhere in life unless you do it today -- right now. So stop dicking around and get started. Future you is friggin' buried. It's up to you -- present you -- to dig his ass out. Otherwise, both of you are going to suffocate, shrivel up, and die.

I'm in a bit of a rampaging personal development tantrum at the moment, so expect a few more posts along this vein before the New Year comes. You have been warned!