Could this be your daily mantra? “I will do it tomorrow.”
That was my song for many years. It nearly destroyed my life. The many excuses I had negatively affected every aspect of my life.
You lose time and energy and achieve less as a result of putting things off. Do not let the procrastination virus get you down anymore. There are ways to prevent it.
Since procrastination is a repetitive habit, it is easy to recognize and prepare the techniques to prevent it. Use these simple three steps you learned in your kindergarten class (they are still useful): stop, look and listen.
When you say the word “stop” to yourself, you do several important things.
• You are no longer acting on impulse, instead, you become conscious of your behaviour.
• You give yourself a chance to think about the consequences of postponing the task you have to do.
• You get angry and disappointed in yourself. These emotions might inspire you to change.
The next step is to “look” around for the reasons you’re tempted to put something off. You’re looking for three types of problems.
• Is clutter getting in your way?
• Is someone distracting you?
• Are you overwhelmed?
The next step is to “listen” to what’s going on in your head.
• Are you giving in to fear or negative feelings about the task?
• Are you discouraged about the skills you have?
• Are your thoughts irrational, unreasonable or self-sabotaging?
Here are three dependable strategies to get anything done:
Strategy 1: Get fired up
This strategy involves doing a reality check. As a former procrastinator, I understand that we go through life feeling embarrassment, shame and frustration. Yet we live in a state of constant denial, believing there is no harm in what we are doing or not doing.
The first negative experience in your life should be a wake-up call. Now is the time to examine your behaviour and how it is affecting your life. Take this opportunity to learn the lesson and how you can make it better.
Strategy 2: Clear the clutter
Let go of things, obligations and people who are not making a positive contribution to your life. Set strong boundaries with those who waste your time and energy. Set daily goals for yourself.
Strategy 3: Practice positive self-talk
The messages that play in your head have enormous power over your behaviour. When you give in to negative emotions, irrational thoughts and destructive self-talk, you open the floodgates to procrastination.
You can start today by replacing negative thoughts with positive ones. It will take time to learn a new internal language that could lead you to action, less stress and a more rewarding life.
Old language: I don’t think I can do that.
New language: I know it seems difficult now, but I can get it done.
I will leave you with this inspirational quote: “You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.” ~ Zig Ziglar
Life coach Ranka Burzan owns a professional organizing company based in the qathet region and has written several books on reducing clutter and becoming more organized. For information, go to solutionsorganizing.com.
