The act of delaying or putting off tasks, often for less important or more enjoyable activities.

It can be helpful to recognise that procrastination isn’t just a matter of time management or laziness. It can be rooted in fear of failure, which slows down your progress.

Or, you could be trying for perfectionism, feeling a lack of motivation, or experiencing overwhelming workloads.

It’s such a common experience, I thought I’d offer you a few tips to help manage the effects of procrastinating on tasks…

💪🏻 🥅 Set Clear Goals:

Break down tasks into smaller, manageable steps. Try the book ‘Eat that Frog’ by Bryan Tracy. It’s an excellent quick read and it demonstrates how doing this can make tasks less daunting and easier to tackle.

🕰️ Time Management:

Use techniques like the Pomodoro Technique (25 minutes of focused work followed by a 5-minute break) to stay on track especially if you have a low boredom threshold.

😇 Overcome Perfectionism:

Recognise that perfectionism can lead to procrastination. Aim for achieving the task, not perfection. Start believing that completion is a better goal and that ‘waiting’ until it’s perfect actually encourages over-thinking. 

☝️Prioritise Tasks:

Focus on high-priority tasks first. Ask yourself,  “what is the one thing that if I did it first, would make the greatest difference?” Then tackle the less critical tasks once the important ones are complete or better still, pay someone to help you with the tedious tasks you don’t enjoy.

🏔️ Create a Productive Environment:

Eliminate distractions so that you can focus. Put a yellow post-it on your computer screen with the ONE task you need to focus on if that helps. Organize your workspace, and set a dedicated work area.

🍰 Reward Yourself:

After completing tasks, reward yourself with a small treat or a break to stay motivated.

👫Accountability Partners:

Share your goals with a friend or a colleague as this can help to hold you accountable for your progress.  Start a new habit, give one a try and let me know how you get on…

S.