Overcome Procrastination Now
16 ways to Overcome Procrastination Now
Struggling with finding the motivation to even do the things you want to do? As a mother of two little ones, that’s a regular occurrence for me. Usually, I can break through and at least get the things done that I want to get done — not so much lately though.
How do you find the motivation to do something you WANT to do such as oh, I don’t know, write a blog post to hopefully provide more helpful content for your readers, when all you feel like doing is being lazy, curling up with a young adult fiction novel and vegging out? (Yes I still read teen lit.) My solution — research then write about motivation.
Recognizing Procrastination for What it Is
Procrastination is often confused with laziness, but as a friend pointed out to me, they are very different.
Procrastination is an active process – you’re choosing to do something else more enjoyable or easy instead of the unpleasant task that you know you should be doing.
Laziness by definition is an inactive process suggesting apathy, inactivity and an unwillingness to act.
So are you being lazy or just procrastinating?
You may be procrastinating if you:
- Fill your day with low-priority tasks.
- Leave an item on your To-Do list for a long time, even though it’s important.
- Read emails several times over without making a decision on what to do with them.
- Start a high-priority task then find yourself switching to do something else.
- Fill your time with unimportant tasks that other people ask you to do, instead of doing the important tasks already on your list.
- Wait to be in the “right mood,” or wait for the “right time” to tackle a task.
We all procrastinate at one point or another. Actually, it’s a pandemic of world-wide proportions really. In fact, about 95% of people admit to delaying or avoiding work, according to Piers Steel, author of “The Procrastination Equation” (the remaining 5% are probably lying).
Consequences and Questions
Giving in to this impulse, however, can have serious consequences.
In the short run, even minor episodes of procrastination can make us feel guilty or ashamed. It can lead to reduced productivity and cause us to miss out on achieving our goals.
In the long run, procrastination can lead to demotivation and disillusionment, which can lead to depression and loss of opportunities.
We know it’s not good, yet most of us do it, which leads me to ask two questions:
- Why do we procrastinate, especially when we know it’s not in our best interest?
- How can we overcome it, preferably without hating the process?
Name it to Tame It
First, to overcome anything, you need to understand the reasons behind why you’re doing it and the function it serves in your life.
Two psychologists, Jane Burka and Lenora Yuen, reported in their article, “Mind Games Procrastinators Play” (Psychology Today, January, 1982), that “understanding the hidden roots of procrastination often seems to weaken them”.
Just knowing our true reasons for procrastinating makes it easier to stop. Understanding where it’s coming from is like attacking the roots of the pesky problem so it won’t come back later rather than just mowing it down for the time being, only to have it sprout its ugly head again.
What are some causes of procrastination?
Tim Pychyl, author of “Solving the Procrastination Puzzle” identified seven triggers that make a task seem more loathsome and thus procrastination-worthy:
- Boring (Zzzzzzzz)
- Frustrating (feeling like you don’t have enough middle fingers to show how you really feel)
- Difficult (like playing darts with cooked spaghetti)
- Ambiguous (Umm. What was I supposed to do again exactly?)
- Unstructured (Like not having a structured content writing schedule and ending up with just leaving writing up to if/when you feel like it. Hmmm.)
- Not intrinsically rewarding (the process itself isn’t fun)
- Lacking in personal meaning (you don’t really have a motivating reason to actually get it done)
Note: sometimes you really are just tired and need a break. If that’s the case, REST. However, if after resting you still find yourself struggling with a task, ask yourself: “Could the cause be one or more of these triggers?” The more triggers, the more loathsome and procrastination-worthy the task. What is something you are putting off right now? Why are you not doing it?
The Role Fear Plays
An additional trigger can be fear. Our reasons for delaying and avoiding are often rooted in fear and anxiety about doing poorly or sometimes even doing too well, of losing control, of looking stupid, of having one’s image or self-concept challenged, etc.
Subconsciously, you may be procrastinating to have the excuse of “not having enough” time – something outside of your control. That way if you do fail, your actual ability is never threatened. And, if you happen to succeed, you feel that much “smarter.”
So, what are some things we can do to overcome our tendencies to procrastinate and escape the “I’ll do it later” trap?
Tips and Ideas
- Do something — anything — to get started. It’s easier to keep going with a task after you’ve overcome the initial hump of starting it in the first place. That’s because we often overestimate the unpleasantness of a task and the tasks that induce procrastination are rarely as bad as we think. Give it a try. You just might find it’s not so bad after all.
- Pay attention to when thoughts of procrastination start to creep into your mind as you start to tackle items on your list. If you find yourself thinking “I don’t feel like doing this now” or “I’ll have time to work on this later,” then you need to recognize that you are about to procrastinate. Instead of giving in to the urge, force yourself to spend at least a few minutes working on the task. In many cases, you might find that it is easier to complete once you get started.
- Tackle tasks as soon as they arise when you can, rather than letting them build up over another day.
- Aim to “eat the frog” first thing, every day! Get those tasks that you find least pleasant out of the way early. This will give you the rest of the day to concentrate on work that you find more enjoyable.
- If you struggle to get going first thing every day, schedule your most daunting tasks for the time of day that you find that you do have your most energy.
- Chunk your goals: set reasonable goals as a manageable list of things to do. Break big tasks down. Author of “The Procrastination Cure,” Jeffery Combs suggests tackling tasks in 15-minute bursts of activity. Give yourself flexibility to change things as you go.
- Make a list of rewards you’ll give yourself at certain completed steps and allot time to celebrate and reward yourself along the way.
- Ask someone to check up on you. Peer pressure works! This is the principle behind self-help groups. If you don’t have anyone to ask, use one of the many accountability apps or tools available online to help you self-monitor.
- Rephrase your internal dialog. The phrases “need to” and “have to,” for example, imply that you have no choice in what you do. This can make you feel disempowered and might even result in self-sabotage. However, saying, “I choose to” or “I get to,” implies that you own a project, and can make you feel more in control of your workload.
- Minimize distractions.
- Turn off your email and social media
- Use an app to help you track and limit your social media usage.
- Avoid sitting anywhere near a television while you work.
- If your internet browser home page is anything other than a search engine, maybe create a new home page or immediately open a new tab that just brings you to a search page until your task is done so you don’t get sucked into something else.
- Make a list of all the things that will distract you from your project. Put a date on those items and list a day you will do them after your project is complete. Once you have completed the project, reward yourself with one of the distractions from your list.
- Identify your loathsome triggers that turn your task into a procrastination-worthy one. Pinpoint what makes the task so unpleasant and think of ways to combat it. For example, if you find it boring, make a game out of it instead.
- Create an action plan to organize your project to give it some structure and direction. Start with quick and small tasks first. These “small wins” will give you a sense of achievement, and will make you feel more positive and less overwhelmed by the larger project or goal that you are working towards.
- Reframe the task by looking at its meaning and relevance. Why are you doing it? What benefit will it provide? This will increase its value to you and make your work more worthwhile.
- Set yourself up for success. Projects often take much longer than expected, so bake in some extra time. And look for ways to make it easier on yourself: If, for example, you are not a morning person, don’t expect yourself to get up an hour early to start the exercise program you have put off for months. It might be better to schedule that activity during lunch or before dinner.
- Ask yourself: What are the consequences of avoiding doing the task? What will happen if I don’t complete the work? How might it affect my personal, family, or work goals?
In conclusion, the majority of us procrastinate and need help at various times finding the motivation for even things we want to do. If you find yourself struggling, investigate what triggers might be underlying reasons so that you can adjust accordingly. There are many things we can do to help us overcome procrastination.
Remember goals are great, but they aren’t actions and “not feeling like it” or “not having enough time” is an excuse, not a reason. Where there’s a will there’s a way. Actually do something. Choose one of the ideas listed to help you vanquish that foe. You’ll likely find that it’s easier than you thought.
Still looking for more ideas to help with overcoming procrastination? Please see my other post: Overcome Procrastination with NLP
What do you do to help yourself be motivated or overcome procrastination?
Share your wisdom in the comments so that we can all help each other out.
