With such a busy schedule, I try my best to be productive throughout the day. Unfortunately, I’ve fallen victim to procrastination more times than I’d like to admit. I’ve discovered that, instead of being lazy or disorganized, I sometimes put things off because I’m not in the right mood to complete the task.
Read on for a few of the ways I’ve worked to nip procrastination in the bud.
- Setting realistic goals. While it sounds great to complete all of the tasks on your to-do list in a short window of time, it’s often easier said than done. I’ve found that setting unrealistic goals is an easy way to get discouraged and provoke a bad mood – which leads to procrastination.
- Be kind to yourself. Don’t beat yourself up! According to Forbes, research shows that the more you can forgive yourself for past procrastination, the more likely you are to overcome your current procrastination and take action.
- Work in shifts. Sometimes I procrastinate because I’m daunted by the magnitude of the task. Whether it’s time-consuming or requires a great deal of writing, an easy way to reduce intimidation is by setting timed or day-parted intervals.
- Be sure you’re in the right environment. You can be well rested and motivated to work, but if your environment isn’t conducive to productivity, it can lead to procrastinate. When I need to focus, I like to shut off distractions like television or loud noises.
- Figure out why you keep procrastinating. Whether it’s stress, hunger, lack of sleep or general distractions, something causes us to repeatedly procrastinate. Whatever it may be in your case, it’s best to step back and figure out why instead of punishing yourself for delaying your tasks at-hand.
Tell Me: How do you overcome procrastination?
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