7 Best Ways to Overcome Procrastination

The term “procrastination” comes from the Latin root word “Procrastinatus.” It means “to postpone, defer, or delay until tomorrow.” There are various types of delays. Some delays are beneficial, but procrastination is a VOLUNTARY and DELIBERATE postponement of an intended action. The only thing preventing us from acting in a timely manner is our own unwillingness to act. This, I believe, is the most perplexing aspect of procrastination. Why are we so hesitant to act? Why do we turn into our own worst enemies? These are the issues that will be addressed in this article.

There are various factors involved in the habit of procrastination. I will describe SEVEN ways that can help you overcome your habit of procrastination.

1. The 5 Second Rule

The 5 Second Rule is the first and most effective method for overcoming procrastination. When you find yourself procrastinating, count 5,4,3,2,1 and start doing what needs to be done. Remember not to think about the logic or philosophy behind this rule. Simply complete the required tasks. I can assure you that it is effective. If you’re interested in learning why this works, read Mel Robbins’ book “The 5 Second Rule.” “How to Stop Screwing Yourself Over,” her TEDx Talk, has been viewed over 28 million times. Her book has also received over 1,000 Amazon reviews. Remember that while you cannot change the past, you can change your life in five seconds. You have the power to change your entire day with strong moment of courage.

“I’ve always deceived my brain with this rule, and it’s always worked for me,” Mel Robbins says. This rule allows you to deceive your mind. Everything boils down to the mind and the gremlins of old thought patterns. These old thought patterns make it difficult for us to complete the tasks at hand. As a result, simply do it. The countdown has started. 5…4…3…2…1…GO!”

2. Attitude and Behavior Philosophy

The second most effective method is our misunderstanding of “Attitude and Behavior Philosophy”. I have observed in my life that most people believe that motivation is necessary to do the desired task. We need to remember that we are human beings and we are emotional beings. We can’t be motivated all the time. It is OUR misconception that our motivational state must match the task we have at our hands. In my opinion, motivation is crap. We believe our behavior follows our attitude, but it is the other way round.

Social psychologists have demonstrated that our attitudes follow our behaviors more than our behaviors follow our attitudes. When we start to act on our intention as intended, we see that our attitude and motivation start following our actions. We think whenever we feel good, we are going to do the desired task, but we never feel that way.

Do what needs to be done, and your feelings will follow your actions. I repeat start doing what needs to be done and your feelings will follow your actions. Actually, the ANTICIPATION OF PAIN in order to complete the desired task is worse than starting a task.  Please note that we are not using Nike’s famous slogan, ‘Just do it!’ This is about just getting started.   After we get started, the ‘doing it’ will take care of itself. You will observe during the entire process that your feelings have followed your actions.

3. ONE MINUTE FALLACY

The third most effective way is “ONE MINUTE FALLACY.”

What is “ONE MINUTE FALLACY?”

I explain it with an example. One day I was working on a project. It had to prepare a report. I sat down at my computer earlier that evening. I had intended to complete my work within two hours, but I thought, “I should update my Facebook status. It will take ONLY ONE MINUTE.”

Believe me, my work was still there after hours. I could not begin working on the report until midnight. In some instances, we think that it will take one minute, but it ends up taking us hours to complete the task, and we still feel like we are where we began. The notion that “it will only take a minute” leads us down a slippery slope to procrastination. Therefore, eliminate the ONE MINUTE FALLACY in your life if you want to get your work done.

4. Get rid of digital distractions

The fourth most effective method for overcoming procrastination is to avoid “Digital Distractions. “Minimizing distractions is an important part of curbing our online procrastination. In order to stay focused on our goal, we must avoid distractions such as social networking sites.

Consequently, we should not be using Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, or any other favorite social media tool in the background of our computer or smartphone while we are working on a project.

Shut them off. I said and I repeat “Simply shut them off”.

You may be tempted to continue, but if you are seriously committed to reducing your procrastination, then this is something you need to do. You must turn off all programs or projects except the one you are working on.

If you are serious about eliminating procrastination. A pre-decision must be made. Precommitment is very important for you to overcome your procrastination.

5. Procrastination Equation

The fifth most effective way to overcome procrastination is to understand the “Procrastination Equation”. Piers Steel is one of the world’s leading experts on the science of procrastination. He presents a number of provocative ideas in his book “Procrastination Equation”. The subtitle of the book is “ How to stop putting things off and start getting stuff done”. In this book, he describes an equation that can assist you in overcoming procrastination.

1. The first variable he discusses is “Expectancy”.

He asks: “Do you EXPECT a great outcome?”

Are you confident in your ability that you will be able to achieve that outcome?

Having a high expectation reduces the likelihood of procrastination. You are more likely to procrastinate if your expectations are low.

If you lack confidence in your ability to achieve your desired outcome, your motivation will be low, or if you are overwhelmed or stressed out, your motivation in such a situation will also be low. The second point he discusses in the equation is:

2. Do you VALUE that thing whatever you are working on?

If it has great meaning to you, that is great – you will be more motivated. You will be more likely to procrastinate if it has little meaning to you. This is our numerator. To achieve high levels of motivation, we must have expectations of achieving goals that are exciting to us.

If our numerator is low, we’re in trouble before we even get to the denominator. It is still important to pay attention to the denominator which will cut our motivation if we are not aware. Now, we’re ready for the first factor connected to procrastination:

3. IMPULSIVENESS!

In the words of Piers Steel, there would be no chronic procrastination without impulsiveness. Impulsiveness is simply the desire for IMMEDIATE GRATIFICATION, which is not helpful in the pursuit of long-term, important projects. In addition to impulsiveness, he discusses “DELAY”. This measures HOW FAR INTO THE FUTURE our project needs to be completed.

4. The longer the delay, the greater the likelihood of procrastination, and, of course, the shorter the delay, the lower the probability of procrastination. This equation represents procrastination.

Let me summarize the equation in one sentence. I will say If a person wants high levels of motivation, he needs to increase his Expectancy and Value and decrease his Impulsiveness and Delay.

6. Focus on the Process, Not the Product

If you wish to overcome procrastination, your focus should be on the process rather than the product. Most of the time when we think about the product or the result, we begin to procrastinate. I believe that our efforts are more important than the outcome. If we concentrate more on the outcome, it leads us to procrastinate. Therefore, if you wish to overcome procrastination, your focus should be on the process.

7. Set Smart Goals

Having smart goals is the seventh-best way to overcome procrastination

In smart S stands for “specific”.

You must have specific goals. You must know What you really want.

M stands for measurable.

You must know how to measure your goals. What is the yardstick you are going to use to measure your goals?

A stands for achievable.

You must know whether you would be able to achieve your goals or not

R stands for realistic

You must know your limitations and you should set realistic goals.

T stands for time-bound

It is imperative that you give yourself enough time. You must give yourself enough time so that you are able to achieve your goals. The probability of you procrastinating is very high, if you do not set smart goals.

We have discussed seven effective ways to overcome procrastination.

To overcome procrastination, one last thing you need to know is the “implementation intention.”

You must implement what I have informed you. If you do not, you will not be able to overcome your habit of procrastination since procrastinators are much like Shakespeare’s character “Hamlet”.

He thinks too much but does nothing. There is no need to overthink. Just start doing what needs to be done. If you begin, the ‘doing it’ will take care of itself. Once you begin, you will notice that your feelings have followed your actions.