Jan 25, This basically means I just put a timer for 25 minutes and start doing only one task. Set up time to prioritize what you will allow in to your calendar and commitments. Managing Director at Asian Efficiency “We procrastinate when we don't have a strict schedule to adhere to. Tony Stubblebine.
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Overcoming the Habit of Delaying Important Tasks. Time Management Scenario Training. Beating the Time Bandits. Pink Author Daniel Pink examines the importance of good timing, working within our circadian rhythm Remote By Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson This book looks at how teleworking can help organizations, and highlights how you can Focus By Daniel Goleman This book explores how you can improve your focus, and concentrate on the things Everyone sometimes likes to slack off, but if you don't at some point have the fortitude to just do the damn work, I'd wager you're working on the wrong projects, or for reasons that don't truly move you.
Attention Expert at Neenjames. It allows you an opportunity to assess if you are the right person to work on that task or strategy. Overcoming procrastination only takes 15 minutes. If you are really avoiding something you need to ask yourself: If the answer is no, determine can you delete it or delegate it. If you can delete it that's fabulous. If you can delegate it, who is the best person to outsource it to?
If the answer is yes you must do it, set the alarm on your smartphone and work on it for 15 dedicated minutes. Your 15 minutes might include creating a 'to do' list of all the items that need to be completed, making a phone call to seek additional information or help, researching more information or just getting it done. It is a small amount of time and when you focus on the activity or task you are procrastinating you can often feel lighter by completing it.
Author and Founder of Develop Good Habits. People procrastinate because the goals seem too daunting. For example, "write a book" can seem like a monumental task, but when you break it down to its component parts it quickly becomes more manageable. Research, outline, rough draft, write chapter one, write chapter 2 etc.
If you break the tasks down and still find that you procrastinate, you can break them down even further. Eventually the tasks get so simple that it seem ridiculous to put them off. Many other things demand your attention like emails, social messaging, mobile messaging My point is that you may have hundreds of things you could be doing and some of those things inspire procrastination. So take a moment and ask yourself what would happen if you just didn't do some of those things.
Are there any serious repercussions? If not, maybe you should just skip it? Just because it seemed like a good idea when you wrote it down, doesn't mean it is still worth your time. You only have so much time in your life.
Is this task really worth doing--especially since you obviously don't really want to do it. Now, obviously, you can't just stop doing everything. I'm not recommending that you not file your taxes just because you've been procrastinating on them. However, most people have a large list of things that they are trying to do and a good percentage of them really don't need to be done.
If you get the items that you don't want to do and aren't really necessary out of the way, it is much easier to focus on the things that are really important.
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It is much easier to fight procrastination on 5 items that are really important than on items where 95 don't matter. And if you find yourself procrastinating on some things in your shortened to-do list of critical items, refer to some of the other great ideas in this post. Founder of The List Producer. No one ever believes it but I am. The one thing I do is chunk out my time into short time spurts. So I'll give myself 10 minutes to start a project and time myself. That way I figure "it's only 10 minutes" and I can get a good start on it.
You can really do anything for 10 minutes. Usually at the end of that 10 minutes I'm in the groove and can continue working. Or I take a break for 15 mins and repeat the process. Founder of A Daring Adventure. However, there is usually one commonality and that is people including me when I do procrastinate are focussing on what they don't want such as the pain of the work, rather than what they do - long-term achievement and the satisfaction of doing meaningful work. And when I say their focus is in the wrong place that can also be on the goal itself, rather than the underlying reason for setting it.
Goals that aren't in alignment with our core values and what is really important to us at a deep level, aren't really worthy goals. Therefore, I remind myself of my values and what it's like to be in alignment with them rather than dwelling on any short-term pain or discomfort.
Basically, if I notice that I'm putting something off I tell myself, "Ok, I can do other things after I do just 5 minutes of work on X. At least move forward on it and then I'm free to work on something else today". What ends up happening is that after 5 or 10 minutes it's actually hard to stop, so I keep going. And on the rare occasion that I want to stop after a few minutes, I go ahead and move on to something else. Unfortunately, I'm somebody who needs external accountability - this is something that I've discovered about myself.
So I make commitments to others, whether they're clients or coaches or accountability partners - to make sure that I don't procrastinate. Chief Thought Provoker at Activate Thought.
Take Control of Your Time
I listen to my body. When I catch myself fidgeting and not working it's usually because I need a break. So I employ positive procrastination -- go for a walk, read a little, take a power nap. When I come back to the work it's easier to focus.
Time Management
I think if I never allowed myself to procrastinate I'd become far less productive. That said, for critical tasks that I must do, I try to get them out of the way early in the day. Founder of Successful Blogging. I try to eliminate as many tasks as possible by asking myself - "Is this an income producing activity? This has really helped to eliminate less important tasks that can promote procrastination and are not productive. In this case, the boring activity I use the most is meditation.
It works because it creates greater awareness of what you're doing and what you're not doing. It also helps you understand why you're procrastinating because meditation creates deep insight about your true motivations and authentic inner drive. The only trick is in not procrastinating on meditating, which having a meditation journal on the floor beside your bed along with a blanket that you will either sit on or trip over solves.
There are two ways to approach meditation: First, as Alan Watts teaches, sit just to sit. This tactic eliminates the burden of trying to clear your mind or trying to do anything other than sitting. Inevitably, you'll come into awareness and realize that you have been sitting there lost in thought. That's when true observation of yourself begins, and it will land sooner and with greater addictive longevity. Second, as Tim Ferriss has suggested, if you set a clock to meditate, always set it to a time less than you think you can accomplish.
So if you think you can meditate for 10 minutes, set your timer to 7 minutes. To Ferriss's advice, I've added the "sit a little longer" principle. To do this, after your alarm rings, shut it off and keep sitting for whatever amount of time suits you. It could be 30 seconds more or even an additional 20 minutes.
It's up to you. Often what happens is that you come into deeper awareness in the add-on. It also helps me keep focused on the most critical tasks of the day, rather than spending time on stuff that feels good Founder of Time Management Chef. That being said, it doesnt mean that it cant be done. Here are some powerful routines and habits that can keep the procrastination monster at bay:.
Planning Experts say every minute spent in planning saves you 10 minutes in execution. Want to become super productive? Then know exactly which tasks to work on at any given time.
Time Management | Psychology Today
Plan one week ahead. This saves a ton of time. You will go from responding to other peoples requests to having control over your schedule. If one week in advance is too difficult, spend at least minutes planning your day the night before. Using a master to-do list Maintain one to-do list aka your master to-do list. It should contain all the activities that you need to do. The activities that aren't included in your master to-do list, wont get done. When you plan your activities in your master to-do list, its important that you prioritize your tasks using the ABCDE method.
A tasks you must do today, if not they will give you serious consequences B tasks you should do today, if not they will give you mild consequences C tasks you could do today, if not they will give no consequences D tasks you delegate E tasks you eliminate. When you start your work day, start with your A tasks, which are your most important tasks. The real trick is to never do a B task before you have completed all your A tasks, and never do a C task before you have completed all your B tasks.
By following this system you will be working at your most income generating tasks at any given time. Removing distractions When you are working on very important tasks, you should isolate yourself, if possible, so you wont get disturbed. Focusing on only one task until its done No multitasking. Just focus on one single task until its done.
If there is an important task that cant be completed in the time you have available, break it down into smaller pieces. Founder of Enchanting Marketing. I need a portfolio of tactics to keep me moving on. One big one is to dedicate the first hour of my day to doing difficult work. I do this in two sessions of 25 minutes before breakfast. Another method is to block out distractions. It's easy to procrastinate when tweets and emails are flying around. So I close down my browsers and do the work. I don't rely on willpower or discipline, I simply make it harder for myself to get distracted.
Lastly, I tell myself it's okay to write something shitty. I only have to get started. I'm fooling myself a little. Usually, once you get started, the work somehow gets done. Split the 'doing' from the 'defining. Procrastination occurs as the ambiguity of the task is too much for our brain to handle, and we make up reasons to avoid it instead.
To avoid this, I would suggest just making sure you're clear a la David Allen 'what the next action is'. For instance, I need a Chinese visa. But writing that on my list as a task is ambiguous, and I don't even know where to start as there are many steps involved in getting the visa. So writing 'get Chinese visa' on my list is unhelpful. Instead, I've broken it down, usually starting at the end point and working backwards, so I can concentrate on the next step.
For example, I need to collect the appropriate paperwork, but before that, I need to look up the visa requirements on the website. To do that, I need to find the website, and so on. This also has the effect of breaking the task down into manageable chunks so you can 'eat the elephant' , and helps you to concentrate on just one action at a time because the more you multi-task, the less you get done.
Founder of Writer's Village. For example, 'write good words'. The last item on the list is always: As I tick the important ones off, I feel a great glow of satisfaction and when I make a new list for the next day I go to bed in a haze of bliss. Founder of Become A Writer Today. Instead of putting over the work for days at a time and then trying to cram it all into several hours at night or over a weekend, work on your most important projects for half an hour first thing each day.
If you do this first thing you're going to have to get up earlier! And if you do this every day, you will make small but determined progress towards your goal. When all else fails plug out your modem and turn off your phone. Oh, and read the War of Art by Steven Pressfield.
Founder and President of Prolific Living. Getting clarity over what is holding me back is always the first step. If I'm sitting at my desk on a Tuesday afternoon, wondering what I need to do, I know it's because I may not have clarity as to which goal I need to work on and which next outcome I want to create. That's the least obvious and most important factor in my own procrastination.
Of course, there are other factors too, such as being too tired. Most of us don't get enough rest. Or being unmotivated, because we don't know our "why" of pursuing our goals. We don't have to do it alone. We can ask for help or get an accountability buddy. But if you are not sure why you are procrastinating, my safe bet is to get absolute and positive clarity on what you are doing and why.
Founder of Hardcore Junkie. I think this is because the world and everyone in it has been convinced that to sit on the fence for a while is a bad thing. When we are in that state of indecision it can be a very important time, a creative time, so I don't push it. When indecision is there I go with it and wait for the inspiration. Now, if procrastination is born from fear of a particular outcome then that's a different story. If we are in a state of fear or anxiety about going one way or another, and we move, we are likely to get a bad result. The trick for me is to ignore popular convention and advice and try to connect with myself.
I believe that fear comes in when we don't trust ourselves to make the right decision. If the answer is not coming then sit, wait, and focus on the outcome you want then go with the inspiration and don't question it. Serial Entrepreneur, Author and Blogger at Dragosroua. As simple as that. I tried many other "wonder methods" but none of them really worked in the long run, I always fell back to the previous "interrupted patterns".
So, the only way to avoid being trapped in the endless pit of Facebook checking, compulsive texting or whatever procrastination practice you're addicted to, it's to just take a deep breathe, focus on the task in front of you and do your job, no matter how hard it feels. When I know that I am procrastinating, I start thinking of the possible losses that can arise due to the procrastination. Take for instance, procrastinating a flight booking.
Sometimes, flight costs increase as we near the travel date. So by delaying your flight booking you end up paying more. This loss extra money spent is one thing. The other thing is: What if there are no flights to suit your schedule on the travel date? You will have to change your entire travel schedule. The losses arising out of such a scenario maybe much higher. Once you know the biggest possible loss, it is easy to do tasks immediately without further delay.
Submitting a sales proposal. The maximum loss by procrastinating on this task is losing the deal. Yes, that could happen if your competitor submitted before you. Though it might look obvious, we don't always consider this Loss on Procrastination because we want to procrastinate for various reasons. Once you do this analysis, you would realize that there is a lot at stake and hence it's good to NOT procrastinate.
If I feel that I don't want to do the thing, then maybe it's not a bad idea to actually postpone doing it; if you continue postponing a task, either delegate or just drop it. As if procrastination is a mental popup window and the solution is a mental popup blocker. It increases my output and keeps me on task, and that's awesome and sounds like the problem is solved, right? I did that for years and got nowhere. No productivity method solves the most malicious and devious forms of procrastination. For the last 10 years I've been meaning to create a will.
But I haven't, because I procrastinate even the act of putting it on my to-do list. Even that simple act is subconsciously too painful for me to do. Underneath even simple tasks is a complex web of thought patterns. Sticking to the will example: Who deserves X and who doesn't? How will this piece of paper affect the way people think of me after I'm gone? And that's the real issue: Until now the entire process of thinking behind this task has been occurring below my level of awareness.
A part of me has been asking all these questions, without my knowledge. And it's come to the conclusion that it would make me uncomfortable to face this. The result is that when I'm planning for the day, this task doesn't even come up. It simply never arrives for my conscious mind to consider.
The neural mechanism that is keeping me from doing this task also keeps me from even thinking about doing the task. Then, when I finally slip into a peaceful slumber after a day of joyous productivity, I am riddled with unseen worries. Undone responsibilities that can't be placed, and slip away when analyzed. A particular cruelty of the mind is that when you are finally unable to act, all the acts your mind kept away from you will surface.
I don't have a method to give anyone. But I think that's OK. It is and always should be an ongoing project of self-improvement. Instead of running away, steer towards what you have to do, full throttle. Set up a gameplan, with specific goals that must be accomplished by certain days. Schedule them in your calendar. Celebrate achieving each of the milestones along the way to fuel your confidence. Excellence is a matter of steps, and breaking down an overwhelming project to smaller pieces is the best way to ensure progress towards the larger goal. I make myself a commitment that I cannot break.
I actually use the timer on the Focus Will app, my perfect time length is 85 minutes, but I know that everyone is different. To get something that I don't like done i. I find I need music with a very high energy level, such as the Up tempo High Energy channel. Then I run the app "Rescue time" which stops anything else working on my computer, then I get to it. I'm flooded with emails, work, phone calls, etc from 8am to 7pm so this usually requires me waking up earlier than normal to tackle the tasks at hand.
This helps me feel like I accomplished something and usually makes for a more productive day. Founder of Profound Impact. I realized long ago that that label was letting me off the hook a bit too easily. The more I identified with being a procrastinator - the more I procrastinated. Instead I started looking at all the ways I did not procrastinate - and found mountains of examples.
This freed me to deal with in-the-moment procrastination far more effectively. My favorite trick for dealing with in-the-moment procrastination is to create a game. I pick a certain amount of time and see just how much I can get done on the dishes, the report, calling prospects, etc. Use a timer and this game can work for all sorts of things - cleaning up your desk at night, filing papers, going to bed at night. Usually, once I break through that initial layer of resistance I can keep going or stop and feel good that I moved a project forward.
If I'm able to see a full list of all the activities that I need to accomplish and when, then I'm able to visually see that there's no time to mess around. Also - when I'm able to see all the tasks that need to be done, if there's one particular thing I'm not overly excited about doing, I'm able to do other activities on the list that require my attention. That momentum of checking something off makes it easier to keep doing what I need to do - especially for those less fun tasks.
Founder of Lies About Parenting. My head is hanging and I'm admitting defeat. My parents did it. Maybe it's genetics, maybe not. Either way, if you're the type that craves that deadline high, learn how to embrace it. Don't fight your procrastination tendencies. Learn to work smart. How do I keep from getting overwhelmed and avoiding last-minute procrastination? The Bullet Journal Method. Get a blank journal, make a list at the beginning of every month that you want to accomplish.