We all procrastinate. Some are recovering. Others are enjoying it.
Some of us procrastinate because we are busy and jump from one task to the other without any sense of prioritization. Others defer tasks for later because the task is too difficult, boring, or unpleasant. Whatever your reason for procrastinating, making a few small changes to how you approach your work can help you overcome the urge to put things off.
“Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can’t buy more hours. Scientists can’t invent new minutes. And you can’t save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you’ve wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow.”
– Denis Waitley, American writer and speaker
So what’s holding you back from completing a task?
Look at the task and ask yourself the reason for your delay. This first step will often offer a clear solution. Are you overwhelmed with other tasks? Are you putting off something you don’t like to do? Is the task too big? Are you unsure where to start? Do you lack the expertise to complete the task?
Isolate the reason for procrastinating, and you can find the solution. Here are few suggestions that work well for me.
CLEAR YOUR MIND OF EVERYTHING THAT NEEDS TO GET DONE
When I’m overwhelmed, nothing helps me more than taking a blank sheet of paper and writing down everything that I know needs to get done. Some of these are already on my calendar or task list but are still floating around in my head causing a distraction. Writing everything down and seeing it all in front of me helps to clear my mind and prioritize what needs to be done first.
IDENTIFY THE FIRST SMALL STEP
What often stymies us in a big project is the first step. Outlining the process across a week of small steps may be where we need to start. How do you learn a new program? Enroll in a webinar. Ask others what worked best for them. These are first steps and will often motivate us to act. Do the first step, then the second and third flow naturally. When you’re finishing up your work day, plan your day tomorrow and place the next small step in the center of your desk. Then start there tomorrow.
SET DUE DATES FOR BIG PROJECTS AND INTERIM DEADLINES FOR SMALL TASKS
Create a plan for executing a big project and include what resources you need and who needs to be involved. Then, break the big project into smaller tasks and develop a schedule with clear interim deadlines for each small task. Holding yourself accountable to meet the interim deadlines is the key to completing a complex project.
This tactic works for delegation as well. Often, a smaller task can be completed by someone else more skilled or interested in that step. Dan Ariely, of MIT’s Sloan School of Management in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Klaus Wertenbroch, of Insead in Fontainebleau, France, conducted a study that discovered interim deadlines were a significant predictor of performance success and on-time delivery. The study indicated that groups who were given the freedom to set their own interim deadlines instead of one final deadline completed their work more accurately and on time.*
MAKE A PROMISE
Publicly tell someone when you will complete a project or task. We all strive for consistency. We also strive for respect and social proof that we have credibility. The promise to another person is much more powerful than the promise to ourselves because we don’t want to let them down.
REWARD YOURSELF
Jump into the task promising yourself something pleasurable following its completion. This can be as simple as getting up from your desk and enjoying a cup of coffee. Our brains can motivate us with little, delayed gratifications.
The tendency to procrastinate is present in all of us. Knowing this, we can take proactive steps to get things done. Cultivate the habit of improvement by practicing some of these tips. Track your progress. Talk about it with others. Seek feedback. And reward yourself by seeing progress with meaningful work.
Have you ever struggled with procrastinating? What tools do you use to keep procrastination at bay?
*Carr, Nicholas G. “Curbing the Procrastination Instinct” Time October 2011.
