The Procrastinator’s Master List

Ten Steps to Overcome Procrastination

What one task should you accomplish now, but for whatever reason, you keep putting it off for tomorrow or some other distant time in the future? All of us, from time to time, have procrastinated about doing something that we know should be accomplished. By definition, procrastination is the intentional and habitual postponement of a task, in order to do a task of less importance. If we have a legitimate reason for postponing a task then by this definition, it is not procrastination.

The following are some of the most common excuses that we have collected in seminars on why people procrastinate:

• It’s not due yet
• I work better under pressure
• The task is boring
• The task is tedious
• I do not feel motivated to do it right now
• It’s too late

Real procrastinators have three strong characteristics. First, procrastinators know they have a problem and know they need to take action. Procrastinators generally feel guilty every time they look at the task that needs to be completed. They often have a good idea of exactly what needs to be done. However, great procrastinators continually postpone the very action that will relieve their guilt.

Second, great procrastinators always promise to take action at some indeterminate time in the future. The hallmark of procrastinators is that they do not ever take immediate action unless there is a crisis concerning the task. The self-talk of a procrastinator generally utilizes the phase “I need to” rather than “I will.” For example, a procrastinator feels comfortable saying, “I need to clean out the garage.” A more goal directed individual would say, “I will clean out the garage by noon tomorrow.”

Third, great procrastinators like to make the performance of the procrastinated task contingent on something else. This makes the delay seem rational and justifiable. For example, a procrastinator might say, “I will take a vacation as soon as the pace slows down.” Unfortunately, for the true procrastinator, the pace never slows down. In this scenario, the delay tactic is a convenient excuse rather than a legitimate reason for the delay. Most procrastination involves self-deception. We try to rationalize why we have not yet completed the task. When we procrastinate, we usually feel guilty or awkward because we acknowledge the fact that we are not weighing the penalties of not completing the task against the benefits of completing the task.

Ten steps to overcome procrastination:

1. Decide What is Causing the Delay
   To win the battle with procrastination, it is critical that you figure out what is causing you to delay the task. Look back over the list of excuses to see which ones apply to you. Once you pinpoint the cause, it is easier to generate a solution.

2. Change Your Attitude
   Most people are not excited about completing a procrastinated task. It is this very lack of excitement and enthusiasm that creates a need to put off the task for one of lesser importance. In fact, you will find that with most procrastinated tasks, you use negative self-talk. If your self-talk consists of a statement like, “I don’t even know where to start,” or “This task is boring,” it will most likely have a negative impact on the outcome. You are much better off focusing on the benefits of completing the task rather than the negative aspects of getting started on the task.

3. Conquer Your Fears
   Sometimes we procrastinate a task because we fear the outcome. An individual puts off going back to school because he is much older than most students and is not sure how well he will do. A good way to overcome your fears and get on with life is to analyze what is the worst possible thing that could happen. After you recognize the worst possible outcome, then ask yourself, “Can I live with the worst possible scenario?” Most times, we can live with the worst possible outcome.

4. Make a Master Procrastination List
   To know what really needs to be done, analyze the different areas of your life and make a list of all the things you are presently procrastinating. Next to each procrastinated task, estimate how much time it will take to complete. Some tasks will only take minutes, other hours and days, and still other tasks may take years. After you analyze the amount of time needed to complete the tasks, then prioritize an order for completion.

5. Organization a Plan for Completion
   After you have prioritized your tasks, the next step is to organize a plan to complete each project. Break down each project into smaller tasks. For example, if you presently have a large pile of magazines you need to read, it may be easier to accomplish the task by taking the following steps. First, separate the different magazines you subscribe to into individual piles. Second, work on only one type of magazine at a time. Third, flip open each magazine to the table of contents and highlight the articles you want to read. Fourth, tear out the articles that are important to you and throw out the rest of the magazine. Fifth, set a goal to read or review articles for thirty minutes a day until you have completed the task.

6. Act Now
   There is only one real solution to winning the battle with procrastination. Like Nike says, “Just Do It!” Let’s say you have to write an article for your corporation’s newsletter. The article will take approximately one hour to write. At this moment, you only have fifteen minutes before you need to be at a meeting. You can still act now. In fifteen minutes, you could put together an outline of the article. Then the next available fifteen minutes can be used to expand the outline, and before you know it, the article is finished.

7. Do the Toughest Part First
   A young boy was sitting at the dinner table staring at some green peas that he did not want to eat. The problem was that his mother said, “You cannot leave the table until you finish all your dinner, and that includes your peas.” After looking at the green peas for over an hour, the boy’s father shared with him this pearl of wisdom. “Son, if you have to swallow a frog, don’t sit there and look at it.” And so is the case with procrastinated tasks. They normally do not get better with time. They are very similar to green peas. If you don’t like them hot, you probably will like them even less when they are cold. If you do one thing you dislike each day, you develop character, and facing difficulties in life will be a lot easier.

8. Use a Daily “To Do” List
   You will find you are better able to accomplish tasks when you have your tasks listed on a master “Things To Do” list. It is important to re-write your list of things to do each day and make a conscious decision which things on the list are your highest priority. If you presently have slips of paper or post-it notes around your work area reminding you what needs to be done, you will find it beneficial to transfer all the information to a master “to do” list. Without a master “to do” list, eventually one of the miscellaneous slips of paper will be lost or misplaced.

9. Set Goals
   Unless you set a goal that is realistic, measurable, and important, and within a specific time frame, you will find that you tend to put off the task. Make a commitment and get the task done.

10. Reward Yourself
    When you accomplish a task you have been procrastinating, reward yourself. Rewards differ from person to person. For one person the reward might be drinking a beer, for another, walking on the beach, and for another, the peace of mind that comes with crossing off one more item on the “to do” list!