11 Steps to kick the “Procrastination”habit!

I think we can all say we suffer from the dreaded “Procrastination” from time to time…putting off important tasks, filling our days with low priority, nice to do tasks and avoiding unpleasant tasks because we are waiting for the right moment, the right level of motivation, the right information etc…. how often do we hear ourselves say I’ll do that tomorrow, make that call tomorrow, send that email tomorrow etc…”?

Procrastination is a vicious cycle, can be destructive and needs to be broken because eventually these tasks we put off become urgent tasks and increase the level of fire fighting in our lives and ultimately impact on our stress levels.  What can we do to kick the procrastination habit…11 simple tips that might help…

1.  Break the task you are putting off into small realistic chunks, don’t be unrealistic and expect to go from zero to hero! It’s like eating an elephant ….bit by bit, piece by piece!

 

2. Gather information for the task, as without it this will just be another excuse to put if off…… but bear in mind if we wait for the moment when absolutely everything is ready, we may never start!

 

3. Think positive… you CAN do it!

 

4. Stop the excuses…observe the “DO IT NOW” attitude! Sometimes we spend more time thinking about it that doing it, not to mention the head-space this thinking is taking up!

 

5. Remove distractions… focus on the task in hand, pick the right environment, changing your environment can often make a huge difference to success

 

 

6.    Consider the consequences of not doing it, even for those of us who like the “thrill of the last minute rush”, these consequences can be enough to force us to do it!

Also think of the feeling we will have when its finally done!

 

7. Promise yourself a reward or 2 when the job is done, find something that motivates you and you enjoy.

 

8.  Set a deadline to achieve the task

 

9. Commit to someone else that you will do it… you may not mind letting yourself down but someone else, this might be a different matter

10. Perfectionism is a time suck & often a reason to procrastinate, by definition “still doing the job after it is done!” Just do the job and LET GO!

 

11.  Take Mark Twain’ s advice…Eat The Frog first thing every morning, get the ugly tasks out of the way (often the ones you are putting off), this sense of achievement & increased energy will stay with you and set you up for a very productive day…

 

As Aristotle said “We are what we repeatedly do” Procrastination stems from a habit, a bad habit! Create a good habit to “DO IT NOW”!

If you need help with managing your procrastination habit…contact Orla on orla@ots.ie or 086 3807802

DON’T PUT IT OFF….!