Procrastination what can i do

The personal vision is one of the core tools, it helps you understand your skills and priorities, and by creating one, you will never feel lost in what is it that you want to do with your life. The personal vision as well helps you to focus your effort on the right activities and set priorities to avoid continually switching between actions. Understand what motivates you, and you will be able to maintain your discipline and make the most out of each day.

Long to-do lists tend to pile on, and this leads to procrastination. Seeing the long list of tasks can frustrate us so much that we have tendencies to give up on them completely. The To-Do Today method is there to help you get the most important and urgent tasks done every day, while also helping you prioritize the work on your schedule and limit new tasks. With its help, you will be able to manage much more in a day, with less stress and tiredness.

Learning new habits is one of the basic elements of personal development. If we make a habit of doing something, its implementation requires less mental energy to do it. Learning new habits is, therefore, very important. But there are several myths about what is working and what is not in learning new habits.

The Habit-list is based on scientific research about proper planning, learning habits, and its tracking, which then motivates us even further. This tool will help to guide you through your own "Meeting With Yourself" a time allocated just for you! During your meetings, you can focus on long-term planning and the overall retrospective of your personal growth. It is designed to make you ask yourself how far you have moved forward recently.

To consider which direction you would like to head in life and to think about what you can improve even further. Detailed descriptions, tips and common pitfalls of these and other tools can be found in the book in the book The End of Procrastination. This book will teach you step by step how to put them into practice. Download free chapter now. It gives us the feeling that we act correctly and that we ourselves do not have to change anything.

See more quotes. Procrastinating on this too? Choose to be more productive instead Read our Bestseller. What is procrasti - nation? Table of contents Procrastination definition Why fight procrastination? Why do people procrastinate? Procrastination quotes. Procrastination definition Trouble persuading yourself to do the things you should do or would like to do. Spread the word.

Do you want to stop Procrastinating? Read the book now. Then, we will see an outline of the approach that will allow you to beat your procrastination, followed by a list of the anti-procrastination techniques that you can use, together with tips on how to make this process as effective as possible. While reading, keep this in mind: procrastination is a tough issue to handle, but if you take the necessary time to read this guide and formulate a valid plan of action, and if you then follow through on this plan, you will have an excellent chance at overcoming or reducing your procrastination.

If you need basic advice on how to stop procrastinating right now , here are some things you can do:. If you want to understand how to stop procrastinating in the long term, here is the systematic approach that you should use:. The main goal of these techniques is to help you deal with the reasons why you procrastinate in the first place.

However, you will significantly benefit from looking through the full guide, which explains all the small details that will help you implement this approach as effectively as possible. This includes, for example, how to set good goals for yourself, how to identify the nature of your procrastination problem, and how to pick the best techniques for dealing with procrastination in your specific situation. Nevertheless, if you want to have the best chance that you can have at beating your procrastination, you will benefit more from using the full system and reading this entire article, even if it takes you some time to do so.

Procrastination is the act of unnecessarily postponing decisions or actions. People often assume that they procrastinate simply a result of laziness or a lack of willpower, but the real answer is much more complex than that, and has to do with the cognitive mechanisms that we use in order to self-regulate our behavior, in our attempts to bring ourselves to take action that is in our best interest.

In short, when we need to perform a certain task, we usually rely on our self-control in order to get ourselves to do so. Furthermore, our motivation , which is based on the desire for some reward which we will receive as a result of completing that task, can provide a helpful boost to our self-control, which helps us act in a timely manner.

However, there are various demotivating factors , such as anxiety or fear of failure , that have an opposite effect than our motivation, meaning that they can make us more likely to postpone our tasks unnecessarily, instead of getting them done in a timely manner. In addition, there are also various hindering factors , such as mental exhaustion or distracting environments, that interfere with our self-control and motivation directly, in a way that also makes us more likely to procrastinate.

Whenever these demotivating and hindering factors outweigh our self-control and motivation, we end up procrastinating. We then have to wait until the balance between them shifts back in our favor before we can get started on our work, which can sometimes take a very long time. This will allow you to take control of your life, and enable you to get your work done when you want to, rather than when your procrastination says you can.

Note : if you want to learn more about why people procrastinate, take a look at the dedicated guide on the topic. Research shows that you can successfully reduce or overcome your procrastination, by using the right techniques. Furthermore, research shows that self-guided, internet-based training can be effective when it comes to overcoming your procrastination. This type of training, which is used in the present guide, involves learning to understand your procrastination problem better, and then learning how to solve it by applying techniques that allow you to deal with the detrimental patterns of thoughts or behaviors that cause you to procrastinate in the first place.

Moreover, research on the topic also shows that these improvements can be maintained in the long-term , both when it comes to reducing your tendency to procrastinate, as well as when it comes to reducing the severity of secondary issues that you experience as a result of your procrastination, such as anxiety and stress. Furthermore, in many cases, you could benefit more from pursuing other types of procrastination treatments , such as in-person cognitive behavioral therapy or group therapy sessions conducted by a professional therapist, either in addition to this approach or instead of it.

However, the existing research on the topic does indicate that for many people, an online, self-guided plan can be effective when it comes to reducing their procrastination problem.

In order to stop procrastinating, you first need to set your goals, and then identify how procrastination will prevent you from achieving them. Next, you need to create a plan of action based on this information, and then implement this plan, while making sure to refine it as you go along. In the following sections, you will learn more about each of these steps, so that you will be able to use this approach as effectively as possible.

In addition, when setting your goals, you also want to make sure that those goals are achievable and meaningful :. In comparison, the goal of writing words per day is both achievable as well as meaningful, which is why it represents a good goal to set for yourself. As such, the most important thing is to find the rate of progress that works for you , in your particular situation. Overall, the first step to overcoming your procrastination is to set your goals. These goals should be clear , achievable , and meaningful , which means that they should be well-defined, possible to accomplish, and significant enough to help you make notable progress.

Once you set your goals, you can move on to the next step of this process, which is to identify the exact nature of your procrastination problem. Specifically, there are three main factors that you should consider when assessing the nature of your procrastination:.

However, by taking the time to clearly identify the nature of your procrastination problem, you can then figure out a valid way to deal with it, instead of just hoping that things will be different in the future. Note that a tool that could help you figure out why you procrastinate is the guide on the psychology of procrastination , which contains a comprehensive list of the reasons why people procrastinate, with the most notable of these being the following:.

To create a plan of action, you need to figure out which anti-procrastination techniques you should use, and how to use them. These techniques, which are listed in the next section, fall into two main categories:. Rather, the important thing is to understand the general idea behind anti-procrastination techniques, and specifically that you can overcome your procrastination by instilling positive behaviors and thought patterns while eliminating negative ones.

In general, each technique is likely to help you accomplish at least one of the following things:. You can use any combination of techniques that you want, and you should pick the ones that fit you best given your particular situation, since different techniques will work differently for different people, and will even work differently for the same person in different situations. As such, make sure to identify the nature of your procrastination problem before figuring out which techniques you should use in order to solve it.

Finally, keep in mind that if this all feels like too much at first, remember that imperfect action is infinitely better than no action at all. Breaking large tasks into smaller sub-tasks can prompt you to take action, by making large tasks feel less overwhelming, and by allowing you to experience a continuous stream of rewarding progress. Furthermore, doing this also benefits you from an organizational perspective, by helping you identify what exactly you need to do in order to achieve your goals, and by enabling you to make plans that include a high level of detail.

For example, if your goal is to write a paper for a class, you can break down the large task of writing the paper into an ordered list of subtasks that you need to perform. Prioritizing your tasks can help you figure out which tasks you need to work on and when you need to work on them.

Overall, there are many methods you can use in order to prioritize your tasks. Different people have different cycles of productivity , which means that different people are productive during different times of the day. For example, some people might work better in the morning, while others might be more productive at night. Finally, when accounting for your productivity cycles, keep in mind that you might be able to handle different types of tasks better during different times of the day.

For example, you can set up a routine of doing creative work early in the morning before checking emails or social media, which is a good way to ensure that you start your day being productive, and by completing your most important tasks while you still have a clear head. The routine that you establish should take your daily productivity cycles into account, which means that different routines will work for different people.

Setting a routine is especially important in some cases, such as if you tend to have an erratic sleep schedule , which could make you sleep-deprived and therefore more prone to procrastination. You can often accomplish more in a few hours of flow than in weeks of procrastination, which is why this mental state should be appreciated as much as possible. Setting deadlines for yourself can reduce the likelihood that you will procrastinate, since deadlines serve as a commitment device , which helps you plan ahead and motivate yourself.

As such, you should avoid using deadlines that encourage you to wait until the last possible minute to get started on your work. A good way to achieve this is to create a series of minor deadlines which correspond to each of the steps that you need to complete along the path to your end goal, instead of having just a single deadline at the end.

This means that you should set proximal goals for yourself, which are small goals that you strive to achieve while working toward your final distal goal. Furthermore, an added benefit of using these intermediate deadlines is that we tend to care more about deadlines that are close to us in time, so constantly having a nearby deadline makes us less likely to procrastinate.

Finally, creating self-imposed deadlines can be especially beneficial in situations where you would otherwise have no clearly defined target date and no external deadline. This might happen, for example, if your goals are related to personal development, as in the case of wanting to start a business or wanting to lose some weight, in which case the lack of a deadline can cause you to procrastinate for an endless amount of time.

However, keep in mind that the effectiveness of deadlines varies in different scenarios, and there are situations where increased flexibility can be preferable to the use of deadlines. This means that if you personally feel that deadlines are hindering your progress in some area, for example because you feel that they stress you out unnecessarily, then it can be reasonable to avoid using them. For example, you can use the Pomodoro Technique , which is a time-management technique where you use a timer in order to organize your workflow.

The Pomodoro Technique entails working on your tasks for a set amount of time e. In addition, as part of the Pomodoro, once you complete a certain number of work cycles e. For example, if you are concerned with not looking dumb you may not ask questions, delve into new areas, try new methods, or take the risks necessary to learn new things and reach new heights.

A good way to put positive motives in motion is to set and focus on your goals. Identify and write down your own personal reasons for enrolling in a course and monitor your progress toward your goals using a goal-setting chart. Remember to focus on your reasons and your goals. Other people's goals for you are not goals at all, but obligations. Another key to overcoming procrastination is to stay actively engaged in your classes.

If you are passive in class you're probably not "getting into" the course and its topics, and that weakens your motivation. What's more, if you are passive you are probably not making as much sense out of the course and course materials as you could. Nonsense and confusion are not engaging; in fact, they are boring and frustrating. We don't often want to do things that are boring or frustrating.

Prevent that by aiming to really understand course material, not memorize it or just "get through it. Awareness — Reflect on the reasons why you procrastinate, your habits and thoughts that lead to procrastinating. Assess — What feelings lead to procrastinating, and how does it make you feel? Are these positive, productive feelings: do you want to change them? Outlook — Alter your perspective. Looking at a big task in terms of smaller pieces makes it less intimidating.

Look for what's appealing about, or what you want to get out of an assignment beyond just the grade. Commit — If you feel stuck, start simply by committing to complete a small task, any task, and write it down. Finish it and reward yourself. Write down on your schedule or "to do" list only what you can completely commit to, and if you write it down, follow through no matter what.

By doing so you will slowly rebuild trust in yourself that you will really do what you say you will, which so many procrastinators have lost. Surroundings — When doing school work, choose wisely where and with whom you are working.

Repeatedly placing yourself in situations where you don't get much done - such as "studying" in your bed, at a cafe or with friends - can actually be a kind of procrastination, a method of avoiding work.

Goals — Focus on what you want to do, not what you want to avoid. Think about the productive reasons for doing a task by setting positive, concrete, meaningful learning and achievement goals for yourself. Be Realistic — Achieving goals and changing habits takes time and effort; don't sabotage yourself by having unrealistic expectations that you cannot meet.