If you’re procrastinating, read this

Procrastination is the thief of time, right?

Photo by Aron Visuals on Unsplash

I am currently writing this WHILE procrastinating, in an effort to try and prevent it in the future! Deep down, I know the ways to beat procrastination, but I’m not very good at implementing them. Perhaps writing them down will help? Let’s find out.

1. Think about the bigger goal of what you’re doing. Or the deep benefit in copywriting speak. Perhaps it’s finishing your degree, furthering your career or boosting your CV. Perhaps it’s just keeping you from being fired, or enabling you to be promoted (or find future work). The more you procrastinate, the more you’re putting off your future success. If success doesn’t sound motivating right now (more responsibility, ugh!), think about money, your future house etc.
2. Break. It. Down. See how I’m doing a numbered list? Try to write one. Or use bullet points. Do the first step. Then perhaps have a short break, then do the second step. Then KEEP GOING. Momentum should build, and soon you’ll just want to get it finished. If it’s a struggle to complete bullet 1, the bullets aren’t small and achievable enough.
3. If you procrastinate now, you’ll probably feel guilty and/or get behind on work later. You’ll try to catch up on work in your free time, be even more demotivated, and feel robbed of your free time too! Sucks, right? So get the work done now, in work time. Think of the gloriousness of having your evenings and holidays free from work. It’s possible, if you’re committed now.
4. Sometimes you need an urgent deadline to get motivated, and it’s just not there. But are you sure it’s not? If you don’t get this done, you’ll be behind on something else. If you have to do everything at the last minute, it’ll be lower quality. You’ll also probably feel guilty if you rush something, or don’t take the time to read and go over all the necessary info, meaning you could miss something and look like an idiot. Put the time in now, so it’s an easier and less stressful ride in the future.
5. Put your phone in another room and don’t check the news or social media. Even your phone out of sight and on silent is much less of a distraction than when it’s in view. If necessary, use a time management app to block the use of these websites during work time. It’s not something I want to have to implement, so I’ll put it off (ha ha!) for now, but if poor focus becomes any more of a problem, you leave me with no choice, future me! You can also change where you work to minimise distractions. Work at a desk (not on the sofa/in bed…), find a quiet space, or go to a coffee shop or library to mix things up and inject some motivation/caffeine (pandemic permitting).
6. Feeling tired or just generally lazy, and would rather be watching TV/YouTube instead? Yeh, we all get those days. This is when you have to bring the external motivator, so this is when to use a timer and bite-sized chunks. Grab a coffee then try to work for just 5–10 minutes without a break, timing it. If you do, you can reward yourself with a short break. Then make the next work session longer.
7. It’s probably the case that this apparent mental mountain will take much less time than you think it will, if you concentrate on the task at hand. Why should it take all day, if discipline enables the task to be done in an hour? Work expands to fill the time you give it, so don’t give it any longer than it deserves.
8. Whatever is bugging your thoughts the most, do that first. That means do the thing you’re really not looking forward to, and don’t do a more “fun” task (e.g. a Gantt chart, reply to emails) as a form of procrastination. This is referred to as an “ugh field” and can actually be a positive thing. Resistance shows that you’re challenging yourself, so push into it, don’t lean against it!
9. Have a reward in mind for when you finish your first micro-goal. This could be something as simple as “I’ll let myself check Twitter. Or I’ll write a silly blog post about procrastination”. As long as you don’t spend longer on this break than doing your actual work!
10. Finally, if things aren’t working at all, chances are you need some exercise. It’s better to spend half an hour going for a walk than the same period of time messing about online. After all, if you’re not going to work, it might as well be something else productive and healthy. While you take this active break, remind yourself that these days happen and it’s not worth getting annoyed about — this will bar your progress further. Try to get a good sleep and then approach it afresh tomorrow.