Procrastination is a dangerous habit. It is laziness at the basics but its more destructive character is often unrecognized due to its apparently harmless garb. If you keep deferring work until a later date, one fine morning you will be shocked to find you have fallen years behind your peers in terms of achievements.
Here we go with a few solutions that will help you stop procrastinating:
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Break your work into little steps:
If the entire work seems unmanageable, break it down into bits. Focus on each part and work with concentration. Having finished one bit, move on to the next. You will be surprised to find that you have completed the work within the deadline.
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Alter the environment:
Environment plays a role in our motivation and efficiency. If your workplace gives you a feel that it is more inviting for a cozy nap change it immediately. Even inspiring workplaces might start looking dull after sometime and you lose the motivation to work. So keep altering the workplace if possible or else reorient your furniture in workplace.
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Create a detailed timeline with specific deadlines:
Don’t view your work as a whole against a given timeline. This will tempt you to defer work. Assign short term deadlines to every part of your work. Individual deadlines may be split up into months, weeks, days or even into hours.
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Spend time with active people:
Mixing and interacting with active people will inspire you to become active as well. These people have a positive impact on our behavior. They teach us the worth of each and every moment. They utilize every iota of time doing productive work and relaxing in between. They are quite a source of immense motivation.
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Get a working companion:
It is advised you get a work companion to share experience to avoid monotony. You may not have the same set of work or same deadlines. What you are trying to achieve is to break the monotony being in each other’s company which acts as a catalyst.
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Tell others about your goals:
Let your family, friends, near and dear ones know about projects in your hand. It is quite natural they will respond back asking you about the progress. Here you are tied up with the obligation to answering them back.
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Follow someone who had already accomplished the job:
Get these experienced people around you and see for yourself that what you were visualizing as a tough job is quite achievable. They may even disclose a couple of tricks which might help.
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Review your goals:
It is necessary to brush up your goals several times and design steps to achieve them.
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Don’t wait for the right time:
If you are waiting for the auspicious moment to start your work, mind it, that moment is never going to come! And you will not be able to move an inch forward even after a month has passed. Any time is a good time to start a task.
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Get a grip and just do it:
All your planning and programming incidental to actual work is gonna stay in your mind unless you start working. Give yourself a go and plunge into working your way towards the target.
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Pre-commitment is the best way:
Pre-committing a task before it begins helps accomplish the task in time. At least it gives you an impetus to start and carry through. A sense of urgency is infused to finish the task within a given timeline.
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Always hit the ground running:
Not getting a clarified idea of the job at hand is the first obstacle to having a mind to handle the job. Get a bird’s eye view of the entire project so that every componentstands out pronounced. You can fairly estimate the time required to complete it and act accordingly.
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Identify the pillars of procrastination:
Identify those and uproot them right away:
– Low task value:
When a task appears unpleasant or less rewarding we may tie a tag ‘whether you like it or not’‘this task got to be completed in time or else your job is at stake ‘.
– Expectations:
If you can estimate a task thoroughly, it is likely you would start it without much dilly dally. The initial steps into the work might be a mentally challenging experience.When you are well through it neck deep, you look for the other bank and swim vigorously.
– Non accomplishment of the target:
Fear of failure is often the chief reason why people procrastinate. However, if you never try you never know your capabilities altogether. It is simply unwise to submit before you have actually started a battle.
Procrastination delays your gains. Find out the ways to come out of the habit and reach your goals faster.
