Procrastination, according to the dictionary means: “The action of delaying or postponing something.” When you procrastinate, you are taking an action, an action that sabotages your ability to do a good job. Why not take action towards success instead?
understand perfectionism
Many people self-sabotage through procrastination by wanting everything to be perfect. The problem is that the perfect does not exist. The best thing you can do is do your best at something, but do it. Done is always better.
improve your self-esteem
Building self-esteem requires you to believe in yourself and make sure your inner voices are positive. Tell yourself that you can do it. It’s bad enough if you have outside influences that are degrading your worth. Don’t let yourself be your own bully.
Move through the doubt
Many times procrastination happens because you are questioning yourself and whether or not you are the right person to do it. But, you have been chosen for a reason and you can also do it and learn as you go. Most people learn as they go, even the dumb ones.
Disconnect
When you have things to do, turn off all unnecessary outside influences like TV, social media, and your cell phone, except for some kind of emergency. Of course, you can turn off the phone and check messages every 90 minutes. However, most of the time there is nothing you can do in a true emergency.
Move
Sometimes if you’re procrastinating, you need a change of scenery. Or if that’s not possible, you need a power bust. The best way to accomplish this is to get up and move. Then get back to work with a timer that requires you to work for a set amount of time before stopping.
Create a realistic schedule
Some people procrastinate because their schedule is unrealistic and they are exhausted. Be honest about what you can accomplish on any given day. Everyone is very busy these days, so be realistic. Put everything on your schedule so you really know what you’re up against.
put it on your calendar
Once you’ve written down everything you need to do, put it on your calendar. Everything, including downtime, needs to be scheduled for the procrastinator. If you have a nightly routine like showering, shaving, brushing your teeth, and reading, work that into your schedule as well.
set reminders
Most electronic calendars have the ability to set reminders and alarms. This can be very helpful for many procrastinators because they know that when the alarm goes off, they can do something else. That makes doing the things you don’t want to do much easier to accomplish, because you can do something else soon.
Responsible
It can be helpful to find a responsible partner to help you with procrastination issues. Set up a way to check in with someone each week to discuss whether or not you accomplished the things you set out to accomplish.
Reward yourself
When you finish a day doing everything on your list, give yourself some kind of reward. You can earn points and redeem them to do something fun.
