In advance of my appearance on WNPR's Colin McEnroe Show, where we'll be discussing procrastination, I'm sharing my top 5 tips on how to beat procrastination. I'd love to know: What works for you, and what doesn't?
5 Ways to Beat Procrastination
All About How to Be More Productive:
Comments
I find the best way to avoid procrastination is to make a list of what i want to accomplish. Then I have goals and actual ideas of things to do, rather than just a vague need to get something done.
I agree; I try to do my to do list for the next day the night before so I can hit the ground running. I’ve also heard about people purposely stopping a project in the middle so as soon as they begin work again, they’re right back at it.
I, too, try not to schedule other appointments or meetings during my most productive time, which is in the morning. I’m pretty worthless after 2 p.m.! I don’t beat myself up about that. I make sure that I have non-taxing things to do at those more unproductive times – filing, making short phone calls, online research, taking short walks, etc.
I dread doing my taxes every year, but at least I have developed a filing system along with some spreadsheets to make the task less ominous when it rolls around. I specifically schedule my tax prep day in advance and we plan, in advance a great reward for when it’s done – a nice dinner out or a show.
Judy, sounds like you and I have the same “work temperament.” I’m still trying to be “OK” with being less productive in the afternoon, but the maintenance stuff is just as important.
I make a monthly list of all the freelance assignments I have, with due dates. Of course, I put all the dates on my calendar as well, but somehow the monthly list, which I look at daily, helps me keep the “big picture” in mind as I go through daily writing tasks.
Long-term planning is very motivational.
I think of “procrastination” as “being highly motivated by the last minute.” So changing the “last minute” mentally helps me a lot. If I have to finish something by Wednesday noon, I convince myself that my real deadline is Monday afternoon. Almost always works!
I love that – fake yourself out!
I did really well with #3 – create a schedule – for 3 months, November to January. I loved it. It was SO much easier to get my work done!
Then I tried adding housework to the schedule for February, because that wasn’t getting done enough – and it all fell apart. Completely.
Since then I’ve had three serious illnesses and a fall, which has gotten me into a horribly overwhelmed and backlogged state, but none of it would be so bad if I still had a working schedule. Any thoughts on why adding housework to the schedule caused the whole thing to crash and burn?
First of all, congrats on making it through a tough year!
Second, I would definitely schedule housework separately. Since I work form home a couple days a week, I find myself using housework to procrastinate from doing work-work. I pretty much follow the concept of the Weekly Organizing Routine so I concentrate on one room in my house or one task every day. I strongly believe that assigning days to housework is helpful. I originally got the idea from a passage in The Help (seriously!) where one of the maids said she organized the housework like this: Monday – bedroom; Tuesday – living room and foyer; Wednesday – heavy cooking / meal plan, etc. One room a day seems doable.
I need solitary marches (brisk, long walks) to put together thoughts and physically demanding exercise to keep me productive.
It’s amazing what a little time away from your desk will do!
I’m good at making lists, but I’m bad at moving on to the next item. I tend to get totally engrossed in what I’m doing at the moment. So I always tackle the item I most dread first. Once I get that over with, I know I can move on to things I enjoy and not feel like I have to rush through them.
I have the same issue; I will start a quick edit on a presentation and before I know it I’ve spent all day on it. I might try your dreaded-task-first plan. One thing I cannot do first is surf the net or do research, because then I’ll just do that all day long.
I have started setting an alarm app on my computer to go off once an hour so I get up from my chair and do some exercises to music. It gives me a break and renewed energy to get going again. This may sound counterproductive, but it seems to help me focus.
I do something similiar. I set up a basement office a few months ago and I was originally trying to get everything I needed within 5 feet of my desk (printer, reference books, electric tea kettle) and then I read this article: Stand Up, Walk Around.
Now I have the coffee pot and tea kettle up one flight of stairs, the printer and bookcase up two flights, and instead of exercising at the end of the day, I run before lunch. Not only is this (I hope!) healthier, I definitely feel more refreshed and ready to work again once I’ve run upstairs and taken a 5 minute break once an hour.
I agree with the walk around, I really find that even a quick circuit around the floor I’m on (swinging my arms) keeps me more alert, which prevents me from drifting off track. I’m also learning to shut down email and social media so bells and notes don’t bother me. I also set my email to check every 30 minutes rather than every 5.
Robin
Thanks! I really liked the Weekly Organizing Routine article. The room-by-room theory isn’t one I’ve tried, and the fact that you addressed the kitchen twice during the week is especially important to me. Plus, my bedroom doesn’t get bad, so I could use the second bedroom day for something that’s worse off.
I notice that this routine only addresses decluttering, though. You’d really have to stop and clean surfaces before putting things back in place, and there’s washing floors, cleaning toilets, dusting, etc., to be done. Would you recommend heavy cleaning once a week, or incorporating it into each room in the weekly schedule?
You’re right that the Weekly Routine is designed as maintenance. When you need deep cleaning done, I would do the decluttering (it’s a lot easier to clean if you declutter regularly, and definitely if you declutter before cleaning ) plus expand it to cleaning, and concentrate on one room at a time.
Some people are more productive spending an entire day going room-to-room, I really prefer the one room at a time method. It comes down to preference.
I have been a freelance writer for a very long time and had a fast paced, exciting career during the mid sixties through the early nineties. Procrastination could very well be my middle name (my parents never gave me one). Despite some success I probably would have been much further ahead in my attempt to jump start my career after a family crises imposed block. For the last few years I have been working on a book for which I have a contract, but procrastination keeps me from completing it and I just can’t get a handle on why. I am also trying to find and sign with an agent. I have tried a few of the tricks outlined in this column/blog, but they don’t give me the PUSH I apparently need., Any suggestions beyond being analyzed? LOL