“My advice is to never do tomorrow what you can do today. Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him” ― Charles Dickens
Procrastination means to put off intentionally the doing of something that should be done. Most of us have been guilty of procrastinating at one period or the other. Even though we feel bad about not taking action, we still just do not take the necessary action. At times we have valid reasons for not taking action. Reasons include being too busy, insufficient funds etc. While these reasons are valid, more often than not, they are simply excuses for doing the real work.
Leading psychotherapists have pointed out that the main reason for procrastination is to avoid the discomfort or pain associated with taking action, which usually results in making meaningful changes in our work and lives. Naturally we tend to retreat to our comfort zone where we do not experience any discomfort.
How do we overcome procrastination? Thankfully, we all can overcome procrastination. Experts say that we can overcome procrastination by:
An awareness that procrastination is a result of avoidance of discomfort or fear. When we gain this awareness, we can make a plan to defeat this fear. Pain can actually become our guide to an expanded life once we know its secret: Pain is never absolute. When we move away from pain, it increases. But if we turn around and face pain, it shrinks.Write down your goal and give yourself a deadline. A goal without a deadline can be put off indefinitely.Break your goal into small pieces. The bigger the goal, the more likely it will appear overwhelming. It becomes achievable when you are able to break it into small pieces. We also do not need to know every step of the process. As you step out in action, your next steps become clearer.Visualize the future you want. Steven Covey in his book –Seven Habits of effective people- says ‘Begin with the end in mind”. Having a picture of the end in mind is a very powerful force to overcome procrastination.Harness fear. Fear is a powerful emotion that can keep us stuck in excuses. Yet, by focusing on what you don’t want, you can harness it in your favor. So write down how you will feel a year from now if you do nothing. Remember, if nothing changes, nothing changes!Build accountability. It helps to get an accountability partner to hold you accountable for the commitments you have made.Just do it. Nike’s slogan says – Just do it. It is critical that you just act, no matter how small the step is, no matter how unprepared you feel.
Question: What did you do to overcome procrastination in an area of your life?