It’s so easy to put off tasks for later and do something more enjoyable in the present moment, but in the long run, this habit may hold you back from achieving your dream goals.
You can take easy actions today to break this bad habit. That doesn’t mean you won’t procrastinate again, but it next time you’ll know how to overcome it.
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Why Do We Procrastinate?
Before we move ahead and talk about how to overcome procrastination, we must understand the reason as to why we procrastinate in the first place. Oftentimes people connect procrastination to laziness, but procrastination and laziness are two different things.
Related: What’s the difference between procrastination and laziness?
You probably noticed that if you enjoy doing something, you instantly get energized when you hear someone talking about it and wouldn’t mind working a few extra hours on it even if there are more important things to do (that doesn’t excite you).
When I was studying at University, and whenever I had to complete a project, I always used to find an excuse to postpone until the last moment because I wasn’t interested in that.
When I started this blog, things started to change as I love working on it every minute, even if it was not easy and I have to face many challenges almost every day.
If there’s something you find interesting, you are less likely to procrastinate, but that doesn’t mean you won’t procrastinate, even if you love your work.
There are a few other reasons we procrastinate that includes fear of failure, lack of interest and/or knowledge, decision-making ability, etc.
Some benefits of overcoming procrastination -
- You get things done in less time.
- No self regret.
- You will have more time for yourself and for the people around you that you love.
- It will help you become more productive.
- The chances of achieving your goals increase.
How to overcome procrastination
1) Connect your goal to a long-term vision.
Do you have a goal of buying that car or your dream home? All the actions you are taking today will decide how soon you will be able to get them. Do you think your actions are in the right direction and will get you there any time soon?
When you connect your daily tasks to your long-term vision, it gets easier to focus on a task that is important.
Creating a vision board is one of the best ways to get clarity on your goals and help you leave all negative and unneeded thoughts behind.
Related- How to create a vision board for your dreams?
2) Ditch Unrealistic Goals and expectations.
You want to achieve something, you set a goal for the next 6 months, but when the time comes, you don’t even get closer to your goal.
Sounds familiar?
And the reason is you did not set the RIGHT goal for yourself and created a lot of unrealistic expectations.
You knew what you wanted to accomplish in 6 months, but you did not know what you needed to do today to get closer to your long-term goal, and that’s why you couldn’t achieve them.
That’s where a to-do list comes in. planning your day ahead sets you up for success.
P.S. – If you are looking for a cute to-do list to plan your day, I recommend using this one.
Having a vision for the future is great and how you want your life to look 5 years from now is great too! But you need to ask yourself what you can do TODAY to achieve that goal.
Are you ready to work for a few more hours at night to get closer to your dream?
Are you ready to put in the work in your business that you are doing part-time now so you can work from home in the future and spend more time with the people you care about?
3) Stop being a perfectionist.
Done is better than perfect. Making mistakes in the journey and learning from them is better rather than waiting for a perfect time because that perfect moment you are waiting for is like a fairytale that does not exist.
I waited for one long year before I started this blog. I was afraid I would fail because I wasn’t feeling quite ready for it. I wanted to learn everything before I began so I could refrain myself from making mistakes, but when I started a blog, I made mistakes, a lot of mistakes. But at the same time, I learned so much that I couldn’t learn if I just sat back and waited for that perfect timing.
4) Ask yourself how you want to feel at the end of the day.
Personally, this one helps me a lot as wherever I procrastinate, I immediately ask myself how I want to feel at the end of the day, and I instantly get back to work because if I don’t, I know I wouldn’t be able to check my to-do list at night, and the workload will increase for the next day which I don’t want at all.
5) Motivate yourself.
Becoming your own motivator in life is important. We all face tough times in our lives. Becoming your own motivator can get you so far. Always remind yourself no matter how bad the situation is, you have the power to get through it.
Related- How to overcome fear and self-doubt?
6) Focus on one task at a time.
How does multitasking damage your brain and career?
7) Don’t fear failure.
What if I fail?
This is the question we get in our minds every time we decide to take the first step. The first step is always the hardest. But isn’t it better to try and fail than not trying at all? This is what I always tell myself whenever I fear failure.
Final thoughts- We all procrastinate, but people who properly plan out their life and learn to manage their time are much more likely to get what they want from their life. Any habit doesn’t form in a day or two, but if we are consistent about it, we get results. Hope you enjoyed these easy steps. If there’s something, you’d like to add, please comment below! I’d love to hear from you.
