We’ve all been there.
Procrastination is a challenge.
As humans, we often struggle with the following:
- Making decisions.
- Delaying, ignoring, or avoiding actions.
- Taking the initiative or completing tasks.
- Practicing proper time management.
Procrastination can lead to an inability to be creative or productive, feelings of loss, insecurity, or inadequacy, and often, daily burnout. It can negatively affect self-talk, self-esteem and self-worth, emotions, and mental health. You may feel overwhelmed, have no motivation to do anything, and avoid accountability.
You blame yourself for laziness, perfectionism, or fear of failure.
It is frustrating and sometimes makes you want to crawl into a cave and never return.
Procrastination rarely leaves you in a better position, and you’re not alone if you do.
Read on to see how you can overcome your procrastination for good.
So, Why Do We Do It?
Procrastination is a form of self-protection and is highly effective at defending yourself. However, it roots itself in fear of the future and often leaves you feeling anxious, vulnerable, uncertain, insecure, and unpredictable. The possible dread may come from deciding to go to events, be in situations and complete tasks that become too much to handle. You feel uncomfortable and sometimes threatened by the prospect of finishing something on time.
Procrastinators may be:
- Apprehensive and energetically withdrawn from people.
- Time wasters and avoiders.
- Blameful of others and themselves.
- Noncommittal to any projects, goals, or achievements.
Behaviors like the ones above can manifest as a pessimistic attitude, a lack of self-confidence, or a feeling of ‘Why bother?’
Practice the Five A’s
Overcoming procrastination comes in stages; the more you implement them, the better you’ll be.
- Attune – here, you become present to what’s happening, pay attention to the root causes and signals you may receive from your body, withhold judgment, and create a safe, collective space to house your thoughts.
- Awareness—In this stage, you develop reflection, deep listening, and inquiry about your default patterns; by identifying your ways, you’ll be ready to tackle them quickly.
- Acknowledge—Here, you evaluate and examine the pros and cons of your procrastination by acknowledging the consequences of your actions or inactions.
- Accept—In this stage, you make a powerful fundamental choice to take ownership of the truth of your habits and default patterns. Then, you begin to shift and reframe behaviors that, in the past, kept you stuck.
- Act—here, you act because, by now, you’ve decided, are willing to engage in the task or activity, and have increased confidence in seeing positive results.
Small Changes=Big Results
You can do this. Pick one of these critical actions to start with the next time procrastination appears.
- Look at your excuses/stories like a detective – Challenge your perception and become great at poking holes through any excuse or account you may have told yourself about the task/activity you need to do.
- Make a daily or weekly list, and keep score – Write a list or put one on your mobile device and check off each task that gets done. Then, reward yourself when it’s complete, and be honest with yourself (look at the five A’s) about what hasn’t been done.
- Step up and seek support—Make your project/task/activity public and gain support from others who can hold you accountable if you’re having trouble following through.
- Do what you dislike first—Pick any task/project/activity you dislike and commit to doing it first over any other. Once you do this, you’ll be able to get into an accessible flow state, and before you know it, you’ll be done.
- Use mindfulness techniques – Adopt different coping strategies to help with the stress, worry, and anxiety that come with procrastination. For example, meditation, yogic breathing, daily exercise, journaling, relaxation music, and guided visualizations can help create opportunities to learn and grow about yourself, your patterns, and your mindset.
After Thoughts
Overcoming procrastination isn’t easy; I don’t believe anyone ever said it was, yet you can get the desired results with the right tools. Any change you want to make possible comes from within you; no one will do it for you.
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