Your Fix For Procrastination

Ah! How we all like doing everything we have to do TOMORROW. Somehow tomorrows always seems like a better place to start and place to bets on. We also know that is far from the truth. Tomorrow is not going to be any different from today, and tomorrow might also pass in the hope of another tomorrows. If you haven’t guessed what I am talking about, I am talking about procrastination. A magical thing today, but a pain in the future. It is interesting to note that there a various kinds of procrastinators and of course they all require different ways to overcome procrastination. Here are a few types and how to get work done TODAY if you are that kind.

Paralyzed Procrastinator
You know you have to do something or want to do something but something keeps stopping you. What is stopping you is the fear of being judges by others, yourself or by both. What more could be stopping you, is setting the bar too high or not being scared of the result even before you set out to do the task. You keep waiting for the right moment to begin, until of course you run out of all the time in the world. Any of these is hindering you from starting in the first place, hence leading to procrastination.

FIX - Paralyzed Procrastinator
o Take a deep breath and remind yourself that nothing goes right in a single go.
o Ask someone to provide them with your judgment to ensure that you are on the right
track.
o Replace ‘what if it goes wrong’ thought with a simple ‘what if it goes right’ thought.
o Take motivation throughout the way by achieving tiny goals.
o Talk to a friend who might help you to clear your thinking and reduce your anxiety.

Pinball Procrastinator
You have so many great ideas and you also have so much work to be done. You tend to get overwhelmed when there is so much work piling on and your motivation is diminishing. It is normal to feel overwhelmed, with work pressure and load, but learn to rest not to quit. You keep bouncing and bouncing from one thing to the next, without getting anything done at all. Not knowing how to start and tackling the task is your biggest demotivation and leads to procrastination.

FIX - Pinball Procrastinator
o Arrange your task according to their priority and urgency. Like, ‘need to finish in the
next one hour’, ‘need to get done by today’ or ‘can wait until later or free time’.
o Engage in creating real consequences for no finishing work on time.
o Break down your task into smaller and smaller pieces and use the micro motivation after
completing that task to push you through.
o When a new idea strikes, pen it down and save it for later, when you can ponder more on
the task.

Put-Upon Procrastinator
You purely find the work boring and so not worth your time, that you end up placing it lowest in the pile. You are super productive but you just can’t motivate yourself to do these tasks which call for attention but are not aligned to your goals and ambitions. These routine tasks might not add on now, but might in the long run. So, you need to hustle, no matter how boring they might be.

FIX - Put-Upon Procrastinator
o You need to understand the importance of the tasks. For this draw a chart in which you
list down all the tasks you have been avoiding till now. Write what happens if you start
them now and what happens if you start them later. Paste it where you can see it.
o Don’t start the second task until you are finished with the first.
o Ask help if you can’t finish the work yourself alone.
o Complain as much as you want, as long as you are getting the work done in time.

Your inner voices might narrate a variation of this...
Put-upon procrastinator – “This is boring why do I have to do it?”
Pinball procrastinator – “So many details to take care of!”
Paralyzed procrastinator – “This will never work out.”

These are just one example of the critical inner voice that different procrastinators have. But just because they are there don’t mean you have to listen to them.

Remember what Christopher Parker said, “Procrastination is like a credit card: it’s a
lot of fun until you get the bill.”

Make sure the bill is not too much to pay.