Just what is the deal with procrastination?

Posted by mary on Wednesday, 24 June 2020

Putting off. Delaying. Avoiding. It’s not just about ignoring boring or unpleasant jobs, procrastination can run much deeper. About 20% of us are serial procrastinators and if you’re one of them it may be because:

1. You take things to the wire to relish that last minute buzz

2. Success or failure – you worry about what people think

3. Not doing it means you absolve yourself of responsibility for the outcome

4. You avoid it to feel good but will probably feel worse in the long term (like starting the diet on Monday).

So how do you conquer procrastination? On the basis that the first 20% of a task accounts for 80% of the value –maybe you just need to make a start.

Here are my top five tips to get you moving:

1. What exactly do you want? Get some clarity about what you want or where you want to be. Clarity = focus and SMART targets have been around for a long time for a reason. You are more likely to achieve a target if it’s specific because your strategy for achieving it can be more precise.
2. Make a cracking plan. Try breaking your plan down into Tiny Specific Tasks (TSTs) each with a deadline. Pin up your plan where you can see it and cross off your actions as you complete them.
3. Choose who you listen to. We’ll often have two conversations going on in our heads. Ignore the pesky demon that tells you you’re not good enough/pretty enough/clever enough/young enough/fit enough or that you might fail. Listen to the encouragement from your inner coach instead who is saying, ‘so what?’ and do it anyway.
4. Try a monthly power week (or a power day once a week if drastic action is needed), where you set a timer and dedicate one hour to drive through the stuff you normally procrastinate over. Make a plan of what you are going to tackle and stick to it. Buddying up with someone on Zoom and working ‘side by side’ for an hour will help keep your commitment strong and is a great way to get stuff done.
5. Act as if you’re already there. Making your goal or target real in your head is half of the battle.