How To Beat Procrastination And Get Things Done

by Monika Mundell @ The Writers Manifesto

I think we all face procrastination issues many times over a lifetime. Procrastination is the evil twin of being in the flow of things, getting things done with seemingly no effort at all. Sometimes, this evil twin can be so annoying that we fall into a pit of self pity and/or depression because we fail to see any progress.

Do you experience these feelings at times? If so, I think I know why you do. While I will never have all the answers, I believe that procrastination is THE MASK of feeling overwhelmed, scared, insecure, or unable to do something correctly.

If we address each of these feelings a little closer, we find some interesting truths. Join me to find out what I have discovered.

Feeling overwhelmed

When we are overwhelmed it is because we are lost of what step to take next. This feeling is often very powerful, so much so that it renders us inactive for days, weeks or even month.

You have probably experienced this gripping fear many times during your life. Perhaps it was a course you wanted to take but never did, a book you wanted to write, a language you felt like learning, or thousands of other things we all want but never achieve.

Feelings of:

• Fear
• Insecurity
• Laziness
• Inability to cope
• and more – are so powerful, they keep us from taking action.

While all of these feelings play a major role with most people’s procrastination issues, ONE SINGLE reason is often the cause of evil amongst them all.

You are trying to bite off too big a chunk to experience progress

Go back and read that last sub-header again.

When we try to take a large bite out of something new it is often enough to leave us feeling in despair the minute we realize that we can simply not cope. To make it easier on yourself your should focus on a step by step process instead.

Interestingly enough, we sabotage ourselves because when we start (or trying to start) something new we are usually excited and really keen to get going. But after taking the first couple of steps we soon realize that more is expected of us than we realized initially.

This is when procrastination hits us at its worst.

But rather than trying to rush things and mentally will them into action I suggest you take a step back and survey the emotional landscape in your head to make order of the whole process.

Doing this will allow you to look at the situation more objectively and this is often the only thing needed to move ahead – out of the tunnel and into the light.

My recipe to beat procrastination

When I get stuck with the evil twin of productivity I do the following:

• I write down my road map which includes each action step to get me where I want to be eventually.
• I then take this road map and divide it up into bite size chunks. These chunks are often measured in time for me, but could well be measured differently for you.
• Last but not least I take action. I start with the smallest step and gradually work my way toward to target.

Remember though, this is not a sure-fire recipe to have you achieve everything you ever wanted to. But it certainly helps to get you moving and movement is key if you want to see results.

Also, there will always be setbacks to everything you tackle. Life is like a tree branch and the branches reflect avenues we choose along the way. Every once in a while you hit a junction – this junction means it is now decision time once again!

Knowing this before you start on your journey will help you a long way to staying productive opposed to keep procrastinating.