You know you should, you say you want to, but still you don't. So you creatively circumvent what you need to accomplish by focusing on all those little things that add up to a full, but unproductive day. What is it you are avoiding? Preparing your taxes, dealing with credit card debt, calling a business associate, writing a presentation?
Many of us spend so much energy putting off those things we don't want to do--because we find the tasks unpleasant, uncomfortable, too challenging, not challenging enough, beneath us, over our heads, or a litany of other reasons-that we have little energy to do the things we enjoy.
You could spend your time analyzing why it is you procrastinate, or you can focus on what you need to get done-and do it. How? By starting each day tackling the item, task, project or conversation that is the most onerous (but necessary). Take your most unpleasant task get it over with first thing in the morning, and by comparison, the rest of the day is a breeze. It's as simple-and difficult-as that.
Our thoughts influence our emotions and our emotions influence our actions. Procrastination involves a process that includes magnifying the negative aspects of the task you are avoiding, and giving those thoughts the power to throw emotional roadblocks in the road to success. But it is a choice.
Once you hear the familiar voice chanting all the reasons to avoid the task at hand, override it with action. And that takes planning. Decide what you need to accomplish, and what you want to accomplish. Some tasks will have pressing deadlines, others will be open ended. If you have a tendency to put off those one-step tasks (like making that unpleasant phone call or writing a memo) then prioritize your day so you start with the task you least want to do and work your way to the more pleasant assignments.
If it's the long-range projects that tend to overwhelm you, then break it into concrete, manageable and achievable steps and schedule those steps into your calendar. Look, if you decided to run a marathon, and you waited until a week before the race to train, well, obviously you'd have set yourself up for failure. But if you planned well, and started your training early enough, you would have gradually built your endurance to a point where running 26.4 miles, and crossing the finish line was achievable. The same goes for those long-range fear-provoking tasks, like preparing a presentation for next month's conference. Divide it into small steps, and start your day by accomplishing the tasks you are most likely to delay. You'll be conquering your fears and you'll avoid the energy-draining guilt that is a by-product of avoidance.
Jonny Bowden, PhD, C.N.S., is an expert in health and nutrition issues and the author of The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth, The Most Effective Natural Cures on Earth and The 150 Most Effective Ways to Boost Your Energy. For more information, visit www.jonnybowden.com
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