Stop Procrastinating

What is that thing that you know you need to do and don’t feel like it? For me, that thing isn’t just one thing- it’s a whole pile of them. Not knowing where to start paralyzes me and I end up just putting it off. Don’t do that! Ha ha. Let’s talk about strategies for overcoming procrastination.

Identify what needs to get done

One way to identify the things that need to get done is with a brain dump. You can sit down and list out the major categories of things to do and then write down everything that you can think of that needs to be done. Then, prioritize and pick your top 1-3 things and get to work.

Set timers & Jump in

Setting a timer and just doing the work for that amount of time lets you know that it’s going to end. This makes it easier to start. If you are telling yourself you don’t have time, just give it a set time- like maybe just 10 minutes and do as much as you can in that amount of time. When that ends, you’ve likely made progress and many times you’ll want to keep going once you get going. It’s less intimidating to get started when you give it a time limit.

Work alongside someone

Whether by phone or in person, try to recruit help. Sometimes talking on the phone while you clean can help it not seem so boring or daunting. My sister and I like to clean and talk to each other. It’s a great way to catch up with family and get things done.

You can also get your kids involved and teach them how to do the task as you do it. Then, next time they can help even more and they are learning useful skills.

Use checklists

Have a tracker for yourself to make sure you’re doing daily tasks that need to get done. The FlyLady app works well for this. You can also have a checklist in a marker board on the fridge, a clipboard with your to dos, etc. Checking things off helps you be able to move to the next thing on the list without having to think so much about what you should do next.

Reward yourself

Try to reach goals and think of a simple reward for yourself. Maybe time to relax, a piece of chocolate, time to read, etc. but make yourself do the tasks first. You’ll be proud of yourself for getting the things done and you won’t have to feel guilty about lounging when you know you earned it.

Put your phone down

It’s a temptation to keep scrolling, talking, looking things up, etc. Put the phone down. Walk away from the phone. Stop getting your phone out every time you’re bored. Let yourself be bored and then use that energy to do something productive instead of seeking another phone induced dopamine hit. Put it down. Get something done. You can do it!

Be a good role model

Fighting your natural urge to procrastinate helps teach your kids by example to get things done. You don’t want them to follow the example of putting things off, so get it done! Get them involved in getting things done. Teach them how to organize tasks and break them into achievable parts.

It’s probably not as hard as you think

Those things you don’t feel like doing, they’re probably not as bad as you think. When we procrastinate we often imagine the tasks as soooo hard and awful. But once we get started, they’re usually not as bad as we’ve made them out to be. Stop procrastinating. Just get moving! You’ve got this!