How To Get Rid of Procrastination?

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Procrastination is nothing but your mind telling you: ‘It’s not that important, no need to stress out, you can do it later.

Steps to overcome Procrastinating

Many of us fall into the trap of procrastination. While knowing you’re not alone might be reassuring, it can also be frightening to discover how much it can hold you back.

Procrastination is the practice of putting off an important task by focusing on less important, more pleasurable, and simpler tasks instead. It differs with laziness, which is the refusal to act.

Procrastination may limit your potential and harm your career. It can also cause problems with teamwork, lower morale, and even lead to despair and job loss. As a result, it is critical to take preventive measures to avoid it.

Recognizing that you’re procrastinating is the first step in overcoming it. Then, determine the causes of your behavior and employ suitable techniques to control and conquer it.

Overcoming the Habit of Procrastinating on Important Tasks

Here’s how to start diverting your energy from mood-altering, goal-derailing activities and getting back on track. Follow the steps below to help you to deal with and prevent procrastination:

Step # 1 Identify the Root Cause

First, you must comprehend and recognize what you are attempting to accomplish and the obstacles impeding your progress.

Ask yourself these questions:

What feelings occur when you attempt to create a proposal or participate in a difficult conversation?
What do you think will happen if you do it?
What is the worst-case scenario? Anxiety is to blame for many, if not most, of these problems.

Basically, the fear of mismanaging the task or failing to complete it causes us to put it off until, ironically, we cannot complete it well or at all.

Step # 2 Determine Why You Are Procrastinating?

Procrastination is a habit as deeply entrenched behavioral tendency. This implies you won’t be able to break it overnight. Habits only cease being habits when you stop doing them, so try as many of the techniques listed below to give yourself the best chance of success.

Every day, strive to do the most difficult things first. Get those things that you despise done as soon as possible. This will free up your day to focus on more pleasurable tasks.
Act as you go. Rather than putting off things until another day, tackle them as soon as they arise.
Forgive yourself for previous procrastination. According to research, self-forgiveness might help you feel more positive about yourself and lower the chance of future procrastination.
Instead of avoiding, reward. If you finish a challenging assignment on time, treat yourself to a doughnut from your favourite shop. And don’t forget to appreciate how satisfying it is to complete tasks!
Re-examine your internal dialogue. For example, the terms ‘need to’ and ‘have to’ suggest you have no option but to do something. This might make you feel powerless and perhaps lead to self-sabotage. On the other hand, saying, ‘I choose to,’ suggests that you own a project and can help you feel more in control of your burden.
Reduce distractions. Turn off your email and social media outlets, and avoid sitting near a television while working.
Ask someone check in on you. Peer pressure is effective! This is the underlying premise of self-help groups.
Make a commitment to the job. Concentrate on doing rather than avoiding. Make a list of the things you need to do and set a time to finish them. This will enable you to approach your task more aggressively.

Step # 3 Implement Anti-Procrastination Techniques

Every day, strive to do the most difficult things first. Get those things that you despise done as soon as possible. This will free up the remainder of your day for you to focus on more pleasurable tasks.
Act as you go. Rather than putting off things until another day, tackle them as soon as they arise.
Forgive yourself for previous procrastination. According to research, self-forgiveness might help you feel more positive about yourself and lower the chance of future procrastination.
Instead of avoiding, reward. If you finish a challenging assignment on time, treat yourself to a donut from your favorite donut shop. And don’t forget to appreciate how satisfying it is to complete tasks!
Re-examine your internal dialogue. The terms ‘need to’ and ‘have to,’ for example, suggest that you have no option but to do something. This might make you feel powerless and perhaps lead to self-sabotage. On the other hand, saying, ‘I choose to,’ suggests that you own a project and can help you feel more in control of your burden.
Reduce distractions. Turn off your email and social media outlets, and avoid sitting near a television while working.
Ask someone check in on you. Peer pressure is effective! This is the underlying premise of self-help groups.
Make a commitment to the job. Concentrate on doing rather than avoiding. Make a list of the things you need to do and set a time to finish them. This will enable you to approach your task more aggressively.

4. Change Your Mindset

The way you view a situation influences how you respond to it and, eventually, what you do. Many of us become trapped in thought traps, or habits of thinking that leave us with no way out or ahead. If you believe, ‘This project is too difficult, I’ll never finish it,’ you may be a magnifier and minimizer, magnifying the more difficult elements of a work while minimizing the advantages, both of which destroy your drive. Instead, say something like, ‘This is a struggle, but it’s achievable, and the benefits of just getting started are well worth it.’

If you say to yourself, ‘I could never accomplish this on my own,’ or ‘I’m simply never good at this type of stuff,’ you’re probably a personalizer or over-generalizer, which indicates poor self-esteem. Because you don’t believe you can accomplish it, and you tell yourself that, well, you believe it, and your fear becomes your reality. Instead, remark, ‘What I’m trying would be difficult for anyone.’ Who better to take on the challenge than me? Who else except myself is willing to take on this challenge?’

You have a self-defeating explanatory style if you think, ‘Nothing ever works out for me,’ or ‘I don’t have what it takes to get this done.’ You think that situations are immutable, and if you believe that, it’s easy to see why you wouldn’t bother trying to change anything. Instead, say something like, ‘Every endeavor, no matter how huge, has a beginning, and this is it.’ Find that one part of the project you know you’re good at and start from there.

Step # 5 Redefine the situation

If you procrastinate due to a lack of discipline, here are six ways to help you get organized:

Maintain a To-Do List: This will keep you from ‘conveniently’ forgetting about those unpleasant or daunting activities.
Make use of task and time management applications: Several applications are available to help you become more organized, such as Google Keep and Google Tasks.
Optimize your To-Do List: This will allow you to easily identify which actions should be prioritized and which may be ignored.
Master the art of project planning and scheduling: If you have a large project or many projects on the go and don’t know where to begin, these tools can assist you in efficiently planning your time and reducing your stress levels.
Take on the most difficult jobs while you are at your most productive: Determine your most effective periods and perform the activities that you find most challenging at these times.
Set time-bound objectives for yourself: Setting clear deadlines for completing activities will keep you on pace to meet your objectives and will leave you with no time for procrastinating.

The Final Word

If you’re inclined to put off jobs because they’re too big for you, try breaking them down into more manageable portions. Divide your tasks into smaller jobs and concentrate on getting them started rather than finishing them.