Overcoming procrastination
Procrastination is to put off intentionally the doing of something that should be done. Psychologist Professor Clarry Lay, said that procrastination occurs when there’s “a temporal gap between intended behavior and enacted behaviour.
The side effects include missed opportunities, frenzied work hours, stress, overwhelm, resentment, and guilt, according to Steve Pavlina who writes on Procrastination.
Reasons for Procrastination:
Stress. Benjamin Franklin advised that the optimal strategy for high productivity is to split your days into one third work, one third play, and one third rest. Place the same value on your play time just as you place on your work time. In his book, “The Now Habit”, Dr. Neil Fiore suggests that making time for guaranteed fun can be an effective way to overcome procrastination
Overwhelmed – break it into smaller projects. Reassess, set priorities, and simplify or eliminate, delegate, and negotiate.
Laziness. Remember, an object at rest tends to remain at rest. Get moving. Exercise.
Perfectionism fuels procrastination - this causes indefinite delays. Just do it!
Lack of motivation. - reward yourself. Ask someone to check up on you – according to “Mind Tools”- peer pressure works.
Lack of Skill – this is a reason to avoid failure. Educate, delegate, or eliminate.
Bad habits – oversleeping, disorganised, poor time management. Keep a to do list, schedule, set goals
By the way, waiting for the “right mood” or the “right time” to tackle the important task at hand is counted as procrastination too.
