Any tricks to not procrastinate?

Question

I am a very successful person. I have a post graduate degree, work in a professional capacity and also have several successful business ventures. But I could do so much more if I didn't procrastinate so much! I know all the standard things to not do it but still having problems. Any hints to what worked for other people? Other than sign off yahoo answers :)

Wow, I appreciate everything everyone has written thus far. I have actually gotten numerous great ideas from several of the writers. Would like to give a best answer to several people. Thank for all the input

Answer 1

Yeah, I'll post them here right after I'm done watching this show on TV.
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OK, it's been 16 hours now and I'm finally getting to this. Sigh
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Procrastination technically refers to the avoidance of a specific task or work which needs to be accomplished. But this technical explanation doesn't begin to capture the emotions triggered by the word. For most of us, the word "procrastination" reminds us of past experiences where we have felt guilty, lazy, inadequate, anxious, or stupid - or some combination of these. It also implies a value judgment; if you procrastinate, you are bad and, as such, you lack worth as a person.

PROCRASTINATION AND ITS CAUSES

In order to understand and solve your procrastination problems, you must carefully analyze those situations where your work is not being completed. First, determine whether the cause is poor time management; if so, you will need to learn and develop time management skills. If, however, you know how to manage your time but don't make use of those skills, you may have a more serious problem. Many individuals cite the following reasons for avoiding work:

Lack of relevance. If something is neither relevant nor meaningful to you personally, it may be difficult to get motivated even to begin.

Acceptance of another’s goals. If a project has been imposed or assigned to you and it is not consistent with your own interests, you may be reluctant to spend the necessary time to see it to conclusion.

Perfectionism. Having unreachable standards will discourage you from pursuing a task. Remember, perfection is unattainable.
Evaluation anxiety. Since other's responses to your work are not under your direct control, overvaluing these responses can create the kind of anxiety that will interfere with work getting accomplished.

Ambiguity. If you are uncertain of what is expected of you, it may be difficult to get started.

Fear of the unknown. If you are venturing into a new realm or field, you don't have any way of knowing how well you'll do. Such an uncertain outcome may inhibit your desire to begin.

Inability to handle the task. If through lack of training, skill, or ability you feel that you lack the personal resources to do the job, you may avoid it completely.

PROCRASTINATION TAKES MANY FORMS

Once you have surmounted the emotional block by acknowledging your procrastination (guilt, anxiety, feelings of inadequacy), and after you have analyzed the underlying causes, you need to clearly specify how you procrastinate. Consider the following examples.

Do you act as though if you ignore a task, it will go away? The midterm exam in your chemistry class is not likely to vaporize, no matter how much you ignore it.

Do you underestimate the work involved in the task, or overestimate your abilities and resources in relationship to the task?

Do you tell yourself that you grasp concepts so easily that you need only spend one hour on the physics problems which would normally take six?

Do you deceive yourself into believing that a mediocre performance or lesser standards are acceptable? For example, if you deceive yourself that a 3.3 GPA will still get you into the medical school of your choice, you may be avoiding the decision to work harder to improve your grade point average and thus may have to alter you career plans. This form of avoidance can prevent you from consciously making choices about important goals in your life.

Do you deceive yourself by substituting one worthy activity for another? Suppose you clean the apartment instead of writing your term paper. Valuing a clean apartment is fine but if that value only becomes important when there is a paper due, you are procrastinating.

Do you believe that repeated "minor" delays are harmless? An example is putting off writing your paper so you can watch five minutes of your favorite television program. If you don't return to writing the paper after the five minutes have elapsed, you may stay tuned to the television for the entire evening, with no work being done on the paper.

Do you dramatize a commitment to a task rather than actually doing it? An example is taking your books on vacation but never opening them, or perhaps even declining invitations for pleasurable events, but still not pursuing the work at hand and not getting needed relaxation. This way you stay in a constant state of unproductive readiness to work - without ever working.

Do you persevere on only one portion of the task? An example is writing and rewriting the introductory paragraph of the paper but not dealing with the body and the conclusion. The introductory paragraph is important, but not at the expense of the entire project.

Do you become paralyzed in deciding between alternative choices? An example involves spending so much time deciding between two term paper topics that you don't have sufficient time to write the paper.

WHAT TO DO ABOUT PROCRASTINATION

If you can visualize yourself in one or more of these violations, you may be ready to overcome your problems with avoidance or procrastination. The following are steps that may help you to deal with your avoidance problem.

Extract from the above examples those principles which apply to you. Make honest decisions about your work. If you wish to spend only a minimal amount of effort or time on a particular task, admit it - do not allow guilt feelings to interfere with your realization of this fact. Weigh the consequences of various amounts of investment in a project and find the optimal return for your investment. This step exposes intentional reasons for avoiding work. If you have been unintentionally avoiding work, admit to yourself that you do want to achieve certain goals and accept the responsibilities involved in meeting those goals.
Work to acquire an adequate understanding of what is necessary to accomplish a task within a given time frame.
Distinguish between activities which dramatize your sense of commitment and those which will help you accomplish the task. Devote only that amount of time which is appropriate for each part of a task. Develop an overview of the entire project and visualize the steps that are needed to reach completion.
EFFECTIVE PLANNING

The larger, more involved, the project, the more difficult it is to plan effectively to carry it out. The following steps may be helpful:

Segment the task. The entire job may seem impossible, but smaller segments may seem more manageable. Divide the task into small steps. Distribute the small steps reasonable within the given time frame. "Reasonably" is the key word; you must allot sufficient time for each step. Do not fool yourself by believing you can do more that is humanly possible.

Realize that humans periodically need variety and relaxation. Intersperse rewards, relaxation, and gratification for work completed. This will help you feel less resentful of the task and the work completed. This will help you feel less resentful of the task and the work that still needs to be done.

Monitor your progress on the small steps. Watch for the pitfalls discussed earlier. Assess problems when they arrive and do something about them quickly. Keep track of the segments and how they fit together to form the whole picture. Reassess time commitments as necessary.

Be reasonable in your expectations of yourself. Perfectionistic or extremely strict expectations may cause you to rebel or may sabotage your progress.

Answer 2

I recently heard a spin on passive-aggressive behavior. You know, you have a mtg and you show up late because your were doing something else. It's passive-aggressive because there's something about the mtg that you have an issue with, but it's one that you can't openly express. Classic passive-agressive example. The spin to procrastination is that the there is something about the things you're putting off that part of you has an issue. Maybe it's that you are overscheduled in general or that presenting a finished whatever for approval is anxiety producing or that you don't like the client or.....

As a professional procrastinator, I actually have identified times when I was putting something off because deep down there actually was something about it that I did not like. Once I took the time -- yes I was procrastinating on something else -- to recognize what it was, I changed it, and did get more timely about it. Anyway, it works a little better for me than setting my watch ahead and all the other little tricks. BTW, I don't like passive-agressive ppl, so I think that's what really served as the kick in the ***. :-)

Good luck.

Answer 3

I turned a dead end job into the start of a very profitable business... I got a taste of big money in a short period of time.... That was enough to wake me up @ 5 a.m. without an alarm clock... I goto bed excited about waking up in the morning!

I love my job and quickly figured out that as long as I have customers all over the globe.... Somebody is at work... and I have the opportunity to expand my customer base when ever I feel like it... (8 to 4:30, and again at 9:00 pm, 11, and 1:30am... ) Somebody somewhere is waiting for my call... They might not know it... but they are!

If you love what you do!!!! I believe that you don't really work a day of your life!

When I was getting started, I always tried to do everything myself! I would get overwhelmed and start pushing things off. I started hiring people to do it for me... I finally found the right folks to do these tasks and it has made my life so much easier! I have also found it quite pleasureful to be the one that makes the rules! That's probably why I like it!

Answer 4

i am right there with you.

it helps for me to put a single task on a single 3 by 5 card.
Not on a list. That way, i get to move the card of the stack, or even tear it up and throw it away when i have done the task.

Depending on WHY i am procrastinating, ( it varies - i am creative in my procrastination! ) i do either the hardest or scariest or the one i have put off the longest FIRST THING IN THE MORNING.


Figuring out why you procrastinate, and what your triggers are can help some.



HOWEVER, having said all of that, there have been times when my procrastination benefited me. it gave time for consideration, finding options that were not immediately obvious, and sometimes the conditions changed, so that an earlier decision would have caused problems.


Good luck.

Answer 5

Yeah sure. Stop pulling all nighters. Get a good 6 hours sleep, Eat a healthy full breakfast, it is the most important thing in the morning. Believe in yourself. If you think that you can't get a task done in a timely fashoin than you procrastinate it, and it never gets done. I CAN DO IT. Don't be afraid to ask for help, or if it is the little simple things that get backed up and start to overwhelm you (mowing the lawn, cleaning the house, taking out the trash, fixing something around the house) than pay the neighbors kid up the street $5 an hour to do them (think about it if you go to work, make $25/hr, and it takes you 1 1/2 hrs to mow the lawn, the neighbors kid does it in 2 hours, than your still making $27.50 more than if you where home mowing it yourself.) ONLY YOU CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN. BEEEE Positive about everything.

Answer 6

You know what worked for me? Hitting rock bottom. I intentionally ignored a rather important notice...well notices...and suffered greatly as a result. Every since then I've been considerably better, but not perfect. Some people....like myself...need to learn the hard way when it comes to procrastination.

Other than that, I would say to make daily "To Do" lists. Keep it posted and check things off as you go along.

Answer 7

OK Mr. very successful person, this is what you do, disconnect the power to your multi-million dollar house. You'll be bored to tears in a matter of hours and want to do all the crappy things you're putting off. Don't turn the power back on until you've done your crappy tasks.

Answer 8

I have this book called "Overcoming Procrastination" it's got a lot of really interesting stuff in it...I just haven't gotten around to finishing it yet.

I have to trick myself into not doing it...like make up a fake deadline and force myself to stick to it, even though I know the real deadline is a long time away.

Answer 9

I make a list for things I want to (and know I can) accomplish each day. It really helps me keep focused and I love being able to check things off the list. It makes me feel good to see all that I've accomplished! It works for me...and I'm good at procrastinating otherwise, too!

Answer 10

If its because they seem so overwhelming, break down things into smaller parts so its easier to accomplish them.

If its because you are concerned of doing it well (perfectionist?), acknowledge this and it will help you go forward if you consider the worst that can happen plus put your best effort forward.

If you plain dont want to do it, screw it! Just kidding, perhaps you can do it while listening to some of your favorite music, doing it during television or bringing on a friend to help. Perhaps put a reward out there for yourself as well.

Answer 11

Keep post-it memos posted everwhere. The more yellow or w/e colors you see, the more it motivates to to get rid of them aka get things done. Keeping everything in one place is a good idea but doesn't get on your nerves. If you have a phone with a calendar on it, use that or use a tablet/pocket pc; they both make noise !!!