Procrastinating – how to break the habit!

 

Procrastinating – how to break the habit!

 

Like many people in the business world, I always have a long list of things I want to get accomplished, but due to the overwhelming struggle of life, I allow things to distract me from getting everything done on time. This is called procrastinating and this year I have vowed to myself that I am going to do better. So here is my strategy to do better and break the habit all together.

I’ve learned over the last year that procrastination comes from being over tired and lack of self-control. I’ve never been this way before but when health issues take over your life, you have no choice but to procrastinate on getting things done.  Now I’m trying to regain the control and self confidence to achieve all the goals I’ve set for myself and change the behaviors that cause what I call my avoidance loop of life. The avoidance loop is really a lack of consistent time management skills that tell your emotions to go to hell and tell you to do something other than what you set out to do, like your to do list. It’s really nothing more than allowing yourself to be distracted with something else other than what you should be doing.

The older I get the more I’m finding myself becoming OCD and making long lists that are doable over the course of a weeks’ time.  Break each task down into 15-minute tasks and check them off one at a time. Some might take longer than 15 minutes, but if you work on the task for 15 minutes at a time, you’ll get it done by the end of the week for sure. Another thing I’ve found that works is a little piece of software on my laptop called Microsoft To Do list. I can create various lists based on subject matter and list my various tasks under each subject. Then I can schedule it for a day or next month giving myself a goal time as to when to get it done. It’s working beautifully. Try it and see if it works for you too. Each task listed with a date to accomplish by challenges me to complete that goal on time. Keeps me accountable for my goals and to do list items.

Procrastination is also a lack of motivation. You might say you want to get something done, but do you have the motivation to truly get it done or is it all talk and no real thought to get the job done. Make up your mind and stop procrastinating. Don’t be an all talk and never get things done kind of person. If you’re reading this blog post, you’re looking for answers to help you achieve your goals, well here’s one. Get off your butt and make a list of things to do. Then prioritize that list into accountable actions and get them done one at a time. Give yourself a complete date for each item and make those dreams come true. You can stop procrastinating if you want, it’s just a matter of realizing that you’re doing it and making the conscience effort to achieve the goals you wish to achieve by doing the things you say you need to get done in order to make it a reality. 

Here's another of my tricks of the trade, create a daily ritual. When I first starting writing my novel, I set aside x amount of hours a day at a certain time of the day, turned my phones off and sat down to write. It might not have been the actual novel, but during that time I came up with concepts, characters, character biographies, location descriptions, plots, themes, styles, and what underlining learning experience did I want to convey to my readers. It was productive for sure. Then when I was ready, I began the book and before I knew it, I had a chapter done, then another, then another and so on. After a year, the book was done. Then I was on to the next one with the same type of ritual. One key thing was to write when I knew no one would call me, text me or flood my emails with messages. That meant between 0500 and 0700 in the morning. Then it was time to get ready for work and off I went. Came home after work, had dinner, and then read over what I wrote that morning while I had a cup of coffee. And so, it went day after day. I scheduled time with friends household chores and life in general. If you come up with a ritual schedule you don’t have to think about what to do, you just know what to do and how to do it. So set up your ritual schedule, grab you coffee, tea or cold drink and get to work on those things you’ve been putting off. If you’re not working on those tasks, work on something that is productive like planning out other things you can be doing. Don’t allow anything or anyone to distract you from your goals. Because it won’t them hurting it will be you hurting yourself and one day you will ask yourself, what am I doing? Your answer will be procrastinating your life away. Stop it and get to work now.

Author Elizabeth Kilbride is a former political operative, author, scriptwriter, historian, and journalist. business professional, creative artist, and life coach consultant. Ms. Kilbride holds a Master's in Criminology and a BS in Business Management she stepped out of the loop for a while but is now back with a powerful opinion and voice in the direction of this country and our economy. As a life coach, she is available to counsel individuals to enjoy their dreams and a better life. Ms. Kilbride loves to travel, and photograph her surroundings and is also a gourmet cook who loves to garden and preserve food for the winter months.