How to Beat Procrastination
I suffered with procrastination for many years and I remember kicking myself whenever I left things undone, and I mean even things that were very important to me. Procrastination cost me my job back when I was in my twenties. This is a serious problem for many people and many of them have no idea how to address it. Beating procrastination is not going to be easy. If my own experience is anything to go by, then it’s going to be a challenge for most people. The key is to be disciplined and to stick to the plan.
Procrastination is usually the result of believing that the task you are to do is overwhelming or that the task is unpleasant. Now please recognize that there are many other causes of procrastination. The two I will address here are in my view the most common ones. What follows is a brief overview of what you can do to rid yourself of procrastination.
Whenever you’re tackling something that you view as unpleasant here is what I recommend:
Without hesitation get started on the task now. Just do it. Don’t over prepare just get started and figure things out or solve the problems that show up as you go along.
Remind yourself over and over again of the issues at staked if you don’t complete the task. Think about what it will cost you, your family, and your company.
Then think about and focus on the benefits of completing the task now. Ask yourself how you would feel once the task is done. Get excite about completing the task, give yourself some praise, tell yourself you are the King of Getting Thing Done! Shout it out. I actually did this when I decided to get a grip on my procrastination concerning unpleasant tasks. I feel like a fool initially but after awhile I began to get so motivated and excite about getting things done that it became a part of me. Now no matter where I am I will give off a big “YES!” when complete something, like writing this blog.
If you procrastinated on overwhelming tasks, like a project for work or school, or a meeting with major stakeholders in a company, here’s what I recommend:
Planning
Use the following steps to guide you:
• State Your Goal - write down your goal statement. Be as detailed as you can.
• Selection criteria - what features must your plan have to be successful?
• Generate strategies - figure out as many ways as you can that the goal could
be achieved. Research it. The more you know the less overwhelming the task
will seem and you will bring the task into perspective.
• Selecting a course of action - based on your selection criteria, pick a
strategy, your plan of action.
• Develop the chosen plan in more detail - detail the plan down to the task
level.
• Put the plan into action –breakdown the plan into simple tasks and do them.
When putting the plan into action it is good to use time blocks of about five to fifteen minutes at a time to do the task in. always start with the easiest part of the task as this will build up some momentum and as your momentum builds your procrastination will begin to retreat.
Just like I said above you also have to remind yourself over and over again of the issues at staked if you don’t complete the task. Try visualizing the consequences and how you will feel and react.
Setting a deadline is good in other areas of you life but with procrastination it’s Godsend. Once you have a deadline your mind, indeed your whole body gets tuned in to the desire to complete the task by that deadline. Once you have completed the task within the required time-span, you will feel a deep sense of accomplishment.
During the planning process it is always good to write out the steps in advance. As you come towards the end of one step, you automatically have the next step in mind, making it much more difficult to put the task off through procrastination.
Getting the help of others
• You can solicit the help of other (friends, family, and coworkers) by letting
them know about what you are doing or are about to do. Then at the end of the
day you tell them what you did or did not do. You can even have them remind
of the task you need to get done or check upon you to see if you are doing
it.
These few steps above are just a few of the ways in which you can beat procrastination. Give them a try and see what happens.
Procrastination is usually the result of believing that the task you are to do is overwhelming or that the task is unpleasant. Now please recognize that there are many other causes of procrastination. The two I will address here are in my view the most common ones. What follows is a brief overview of what you can do to rid yourself of procrastination.
Whenever you’re tackling something that you view as unpleasant here is what I recommend:
Without hesitation get started on the task now. Just do it. Don’t over prepare just get started and figure things out or solve the problems that show up as you go along.
Remind yourself over and over again of the issues at staked if you don’t complete the task. Think about what it will cost you, your family, and your company.
Then think about and focus on the benefits of completing the task now. Ask yourself how you would feel once the task is done. Get excite about completing the task, give yourself some praise, tell yourself you are the King of Getting Thing Done! Shout it out. I actually did this when I decided to get a grip on my procrastination concerning unpleasant tasks. I feel like a fool initially but after awhile I began to get so motivated and excite about getting things done that it became a part of me. Now no matter where I am I will give off a big “YES!” when complete something, like writing this blog.
If you procrastinated on overwhelming tasks, like a project for work or school, or a meeting with major stakeholders in a company, here’s what I recommend:
Planning
Use the following steps to guide you:
• State Your Goal - write down your goal statement. Be as detailed as you can.
• Selection criteria - what features must your plan have to be successful?
• Generate strategies - figure out as many ways as you can that the goal could
be achieved. Research it. The more you know the less overwhelming the task
will seem and you will bring the task into perspective.
• Selecting a course of action - based on your selection criteria, pick a
strategy, your plan of action.
• Develop the chosen plan in more detail - detail the plan down to the task
level.
• Put the plan into action –breakdown the plan into simple tasks and do them.
When putting the plan into action it is good to use time blocks of about five to fifteen minutes at a time to do the task in. always start with the easiest part of the task as this will build up some momentum and as your momentum builds your procrastination will begin to retreat.
Just like I said above you also have to remind yourself over and over again of the issues at staked if you don’t complete the task. Try visualizing the consequences and how you will feel and react.
Setting a deadline is good in other areas of you life but with procrastination it’s Godsend. Once you have a deadline your mind, indeed your whole body gets tuned in to the desire to complete the task by that deadline. Once you have completed the task within the required time-span, you will feel a deep sense of accomplishment.
During the planning process it is always good to write out the steps in advance. As you come towards the end of one step, you automatically have the next step in mind, making it much more difficult to put the task off through procrastination.
Getting the help of others
• You can solicit the help of other (friends, family, and coworkers) by letting
them know about what you are doing or are about to do. Then at the end of the
day you tell them what you did or did not do. You can even have them remind
of the task you need to get done or check upon you to see if you are doing
it.
These few steps above are just a few of the ways in which you can beat procrastination. Give them a try and see what happens.
posted by Vladimir C Murray | 7:42 AM
|
0 comments
