How To Stop Being A Procrastinator

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I got really sick of being a procrastinator one day. I mean really, I started to feel nauseous and icky. I started to feel embarrassed. Telling others what I’d done with my day or how this or that project was coming along felt bad. There was a lot of lying and hedging involved. I wasn’t proud of myself. Simply grabbing drinks with friends and telling them what I’d been up to that week became something I dreaded because it meant giving updates. I wasn’t proud of my updates. I didn’t have many. And it was all because I was a procrastinator. Every level of task in your life—from the menial to the passion projects—affects the others. You can’t do well on the big stuff if the little stuff is hanging over your head. You won’t get around to the little stuff if you’re stressed about the big stuff. The lack of organization across the board touches every part of your life. I needed to do something about it, personally. Maybe this can help you. Here are ways to stop being a procrastinator.

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If you say the word “Tomorrow,” do it today

If you hear the words, “I’ll do this tomorrow” come out of your mouth, stop what you’re doing and do it today. If you say, “I’ll do it tomorrow,” then you know that’s something you don’t want to do. You won’t want to do it tomorrow, either, so do it now.

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Do the most rewarding thing first

Don’t mistake this for the most fun thing. They are not the same. This is that task that is complex, that you know will move the most important part of your life along, and that you’re afraid to tackle. It’s writing more pages of that book. It’s building the website for your business. If you do that first thing in the morning, the rewarding feeling that comes with that will energize you all day.

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Also, focus on the reward

Really visualize that reward while working on this complex tax. See your book being accepted by a publishing company. See those purchases coming in through your website. Focusing on this will motivate you to do the tedious work now.

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Then the tedious things

After doing the rewarding, big-picture things, do the tedious things. This is the meal prep. This is the finally reorganizing your tax documents into appropriate files. It’s not fascinating work, but it will save you a headache later in life.

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Find ways to make boring tasks fun

When it comes time to do boring tasks like laundry or cleaning, find a way to make it fun. Listen to a true crime podcast on your headphones while you sweep. Hey, have a glass of wine while folding clothes (if it’s that time of day). You’ll actually look forward to these tasks, then.

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Time out your day

Make time slots for tasks that you normally wouldn’t. Your calendar can state things as specific as “From 10 am to 10:20am, empty dishwasher and load it.” If you say, “I’ll do this at some point” you’ll never do it.

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Include breaks

Schedule breaks into your day. You’ll feel more motivated knowing that break is coming, and knowing you won’t enjoy that break if you didn’t earn it. It’s also good for morale to know you won’t be doing this tedious task forever.

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Get specific

Break goals down into specific goals. If you say, “I’ll write this book in a year” it probably won’t happen. If you say, “I’ll write the first page of the outline tomorrow from noon to four pm,” there is a better chance it will happen.

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Maybe take on more

They say “Give jobs to busy people” because, somehow, the more they have to do, the better they become at optimizing and organizing their time. If you would describe your life as a little slow right now, and yet you’re still not getting the few things you need to do done, this could be you. Maybe adding a new responsibility to your day that creates structure—like volunteer work or more shifts at work—will force you to get organized.

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Don’t allow for distractions

Silence your phone. Put a “Do not disturb” sign on your door. Close Facebook. If you need to work at a coffee shop so your roommates or partner don’t talk to you, do that. You know how easily you’re distracted, so get out of your way and find ways to avoid these distractions.

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Don’t share everything

You don’t need to tell everyone what you’re doing. They’ll talk you out of it. If friends want you to go to the beach on a day you promised yourself you’d work on a project, just say you can’t go. You don’t need to tell them why. They may try to tell you that you don’t need to work on that, and they’ll get in your head.

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Give yourself rewards

Give yourself rewards for accomplishing bigger projects. When you finish the first chapter of your book, get a mani/pedi or treat yourself to dinner at that nice restaurant. We are never too old to want a treat.

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Announce your aspirations

Tell others—people you respect who you want to respect you back—about your goals. Maybe you can get a mentor who frequently checks up on you. This could be a colleague, a boss, or perhaps your partner. They’ll periodically ask you how those are going, and knowing they are going to ask will make you want to work harder.

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Create deadlines

Set deadlines for yourself. You may not meet these at first. That’s okay. It’s actually an important part of this because once you see that it doesn’t feel good to miss a deadline, you’ll work harder to meet the next one.

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Remove the thinking step

Usually you approach a goal like this: you set it, then you think of all of the excuses not to do it, and then you do or don’t do it. Skip that second step. Don’t give one thought to excuses. Identify the task. Do the task.