Procrastination
Why do you procrastinate and how can you overcome it?
Procrastination
Often procrastination is caused by our lack of focus and abundance of distractions. I have compiled five ways on how to combat procrastination and do what is most important for your life and future.
Eat the frog
A quote from Mark Twain – “If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.”
The message behind this quote is that if you have a difficult task, you should get it done first and as early as possible. When you get the biggest task done first you will feel more at ease and it won’t be looming over you throughout the day. You will find it much more difficult to unwind with this seemingly huge task that needs doing still in the back of your mind. And the more you postpone it the more it will add up. If you don’t eat the frog today you will have to eat two tomorrow.
The 3 2 1 Method
This task may seem stupid or seemingly “too easy” however it can work in many instances and provide a small boost to get you going.
First, think about the task you need to do then count down from 3 2 1 in your head and at the end do the task.
This builds up a psychological momentum towards the task and acts as the first step. It can prove useful, as counting from 3 2 1 in your head is much easier than getting up and doing the task as an alternative first step.
Just do something
Many people believe that in order to act or work we need motivation. In reality, we often need to act in order to gain motivation. If motivation and inspiration are difficult to come by it may be much easier just to start with action. It doesn’t have to be a huge task or something long and tedious but just doing something can offer momentum and motivation for a task you have been putting off. It could be a habit you already have such as brushing your teeth or making your bed. Action creates motivation and motivation inspires more action. If we start to slack or become lazy we can not expect a burst of motivation to rescue us and instead should just try and do something as small as it might be.
Change your enviroment
Your environment is a huge factor contributing to your habits and mentality. If your surroundings are chaotic and messy your lifestyle and mind are likely to follow suit. It is much easier to change your physical environment than it is to try and work through it. Make sure your surroundings are conducive to the work that you need to complete. For tasks such as writing or essays, a state of deep focus is required without distraction so anything out on your desk or around you can act as a distraction and disrupt your state of focus as well as wasting time. Your phone is one of the biggest distractions which can lead to you checking just one notification and before you know it you’ve spent 20 minutes scrolling through social media. When working put your phone on silent and out of sight until you’re done.
Time Blocks
Using time blocks can be very useful when improving your productivity and focus. Focus is the same as any muscle you must train it in order to make it stronger. A way to do this is by removing distractions from your workspace and setting a timer to work and do nothing else. You can’t allow you’re self to get distracted and must stay focused until the timer goes off. This time could be anywhere from 10-30 minutes to start with, if your focus isn’t too good start with the lower amount of time. Do this each day and when it becomes seemingly easy to do add 10 minutes. Repeating this will train your focus and allow you to work productively for longer. The maximum time anyone can focus for is 90 minutes so you could set that as your target.