Avoiding Procrastination

"Do not put your work off till tomorrow and the day after; for a sluggish worker does not fill his barn, nor one who puts off his work: industry makes work go well, but a man who puts off work is always at hand-grips with ruin". – Perses

 At one time I found myself  making mental notes to finish up on an important  task but I  ended up postponing it because I thought there were four days left before  the deadline and it was now time to catch up on my favorite series. The next day I told myself that if I work religiously for two days I can still finish up on the project so I spent whole the day doing other trivial tasks. A day before the deadline my anxiety level was through the roof because I knew that the work needed to be done and I was running out of time.

I know you are familiar with the stress and tension that comes with leaving work to the last minute. More often than not, procrastination is a product of laziness and mostly it comes in two forms: getting distracted while working on a task (when you cannot resist the urge to do something else) and difficulty in starting something.  At first, it may not be a big deal until you find the same thing happening over and over. The next time you find yourself having difficulties starting on something or you hear a voice in your head telling you to check your social media or go get a snack in the middle of an important project, try the following hacks,

Make a well thought to-do list

This will help you keep track of the things you have to accomplish and help you in case you forget something you are supposed to do. Learn to prioritize your tasks and put the important and urgent tasks on top of the list. It is always advisable to start with the important tasks early in the morning when you still have the willpower. Also, avoid multitasking because it makes you feel like you are doing a lot at once but it hinders you from finishing tasks fast and effectively.

Break your tasks into smaller chunks

Some tasks may take many hours to complete and this can be overwhelming and it can also make someone lose the motivation to even start working on them but if you try dividing your work into sets 15 minutes after which you take a break it will be a lot easier working on them.  You can use a simple phone timer to know when it’s time for a break and when to get back to work

Block out distractions

Not having to deal with the temptation of continuous distractions will not only make it less likely that you will surrender to temptation, but it will give you more energy to concentrate  on your work and avoid procrastinating. First you should pick a work space that is good for you. Also, keep away all gadgets that may cause distraction.  Having your phone close to you as you work means that you know that your social media accounts are just a click away and you may be tempted to sneak into them for a minute which turns into hours. There are soft wares such as Rescuetime, AppDetox and StayFocused that you can use to block the internet altogether.

Only do the things you are really passionate about

Sometimes procrastination is not a result of laziness you might be shelving tasks because you do not enjoy doing them. Maybe it’s time to switch careers or find another job and pursue your passion. Also,  you may try making your work fun since we cannot always shun challenging tasks. Take frequent brief breaks in between your working hours to reenergize.

Reward yourself

Once you have successfully completed your work it’s now time to watch that show you have been trying so hard to resist.  You can use that anticipation to push yourself through the pain as you work