You understand that you need to stop putting things off to tomorrow or that specific ‘someday,’ which may never even come. Almost all of us have at some point of time or the other faced the not-so-good consequences of procrastinating; deadlines became deadlier, anxiety levels peaked, stress multiplied, and performance dropped! But could you ever stop yourself from procrastinating?
If your answer is a NO, then you need to read this to know about some simple, practical, and effective ways through which you can stop procrastinating for good.
1. Make a list
Things get better only if we want to make them better. First things need to be done first, and then the rest follows. So, the first thing that you need to do to stop procrastinating is that you must prepare a ‘LIST’ of the things that you have particularly been putting off to that ‘someday’. Take your time and make a proper list so that when you start doing the tasks, you don’t end up still postponing some things!
2. Start with one task
Now that your list is complete, look at it and find out that one thing that you can do immediately. This will act as a kick-starter, and you will know that things are now moving. It need not be the biggest of your goals from that list, in fact, try and do a small thing, so that you can easily strike out that job or project from the list and then keep moving to the other things.
3. Break your work for long-term projects
One of the biggest reasons why we generally procrastinate is that we find a project or job too overwhelming. This feeling never lets us start any long-term project. The best thing to do in such a scenario is to break the task into easy segments. If the sub-segments also seem tough, then keep breaking up the work till you get to a level that you say, ‘C’mon man, this is too simple.’ Get that simple thing done and get going with the rest of the segments.
4. Set deadlines for yourself
For the office work, you mostly get deadlines, and for that reason, you somehow just complete the work (mostly done at the last minute, though). But, when we have our personal life goals, then we tend to procrastinate more, because here, we do not have deadlines and that becomes the sole reason as to why our personal goals take so much of time to accomplish. Do yourself a favor and set deadlines for yourself. You have already created segments of the work, as discussed in the previous point; so, now it will become easier for you to just give a deadline to each task.
5. Quit the perfectionist streak
Most of the times, we keep thinking that right now things are not perfect to start the project. We keep looking for more and more inputs, but seldom do we reach that perfection in a time-bound manner, and this keeps delaying the project. Let it start and then keep improving as you go further into the task at hand.
6. Surround yourself with the right people
By right people here, we mean that be in a company which can motivate you to take actions. There are different kinds of people, and some actually don’t even want you to succeed in life, so how are they going to motivate you to even do anything, let alone push you to do it faster. Find the people who can truly be your supporters and let their action-oriented nature rub on you.
7. Re-define your goals
One of the reasons you may be procrastinating is that your goals may have changed over time. We sometimes do outgrow our goals in the process of knowing ourselves better, and there is nothing wrong in that, because we are basically only growing. But we need to be aware of the changes, so that we can work on them timely. If need be, take a vacation or a break and find out what you want from your life. Taking a break will help you focus on yourself more than the jobs and projects and you will be more in tune with your needs and true goals. Once you get to know about them, you will surely be filled with refreshed energy to pursue those goals.
8. Imagine how you may feel when all your tasks will be completed!
You certainly have a list by now, which may take some time, but just imagine the day when all your tasks and projects will be done. Won’t you feel a great sense of freedom that you have finally completed your job. And with freedom, you will also see a boost in your confidence levels because you have not just been thinking of doing things, but you actually did it all.
Now you see, stopping or avoiding the procrastinating tendency is not that difficult a task; you just need to strategically make plans and work on them with full dedication.
About the Author
Kanchan Choudhary is an Author, blogger, and artist who has found her purpose in creating and curating the magic of words in such a manner that people see the beauty of life in what she writes. Her aim is to inspire people, make them happy and find their North Star by reading her words. When she is not writing, reading or learning, she paints to splash colors on canvas, and cooks to nurture everyone with love that she knows is always there in anything that she does with a smile on her face.