Ever tried overcoming procrastination? I have. I am very inventive in finding reasons why not to do something just now, even so (I think ) I want to do it.
Before I talk about what you can try in your quest to overcoming procrastination, I want to look at it more closely.
About procrastination
What is procrastination?
According to Wikipedia Procrastination “refers to the counterproductive deferment of actions or tasks to a later time.”
When we procrastinate we sabotage ourselves. We put (unnecessary) obstacles in our own path. We actually choose a path that hurts our performance and success in life. So your desire of overcoming procrastination is not only a nice idea but a very important task on your way to self improvement.
Why do we procrastinate?
There seem to be three main types of procrastination:
thrill-seeking
People who wait to the last minute for the euphoric rush.
avoiding
This may be avoiding fear of failure or even fear of success, but in either case you are very concerned with what others think of you. Probably you would rather have others think you lack effort than ability.
decisional procrastination
People who cannot make a decision. Not making a decision absolves procrastinators of responsibility for the outcome of events.
Do you see yourself there? What is your reason(s) for procrastination?
Overcoming procrastination
If you are a victim to procrastination and want to overcome it — remember that it is a habit and you need around 30 consecutive days of performing your new ways to make a habit out of it.
So don’t give up straight away and don’t only follow this tips once, but for at least one month. Then you will be on your path to overcoming procrastination.
Prioritize
You have heaps of things to do. Where to start? Prioritize your tasks, but not only by urgency (which will increase the more you procrastinate) but also by outcome.
Which task brings you closer to achieving your goals in life? Yes, you have to make sure you pay your bills on time. But that doesn’t take all day. You still have time to take an active step towards your future.
Eat the biggest frog first
Once you have your tasks sorted and know which ones you will do today — start with the one that you like least to do. Conquer your biggest fear first and the rest of the day will by child’s play.
Avoid distractions
Yes, there are emails to read and you need to empty the rubbish bin and, hang on, you promised your best friend to give her a call. When you start overcoming procrastination it’s easy to get distracted in today’s busy world. But you know as well as I do that these are not high priority items on your list and can still be done later. Put them on your list to be prioritized tomorrow and finish the things that are on today’s list.
Navigate your obstacles
What’s getting in the way? It could be that you don’t have all the information you need to progress. Or that you have no idea how to start. Find out what is stopping you and take at least one step towards completing the task you set out to do. That can be asking someone for the missing information or finding someone who has done something similar before you. Just get going.
Be realistic
If you delay because you think “I don’t have enough time now to do it” think again. Is your time estimate realistic? And if it is really such a big task — break it down into smaller steps and get going. Once you have started you will be astonished how much you can achieve in 15 or 30minutes. And you will be proud of yourself that you made the first step. Just don’t forget to keep on going
Make an appointment with yourself
You are the most important person in your life and responsible for your self improvement. So take time for the tasks that are important to your life, make an appointment with yourself and stick to it. You manage to keep your doctor’s appointments …
Just do it
Procrastination is in-action. So the best way to overcoming procrastination is taking action. Therefore the best advise I can give you — get started and just do it
There are big costs to procrastination. Health is one. Through procrastinating you create stress for yourself, which will have a negative effect on your immune system, you are more likely to have colds and flu, more gastrointestinal problems. Or you might suffer from insomnia.
So you see, if you like to push things to tomorrow, overcoming procrastination is not only helping you to achieve things faster — but also enjoy life more. Share your story of how you are overcoming procrastination with me in the comments. Thanks!
