Posts Tagged ‘procrastination’
how to stop procrastinating
Posted on: December 22, 2011
Ahhhh, procrastination. It’s so easy to put things off – just…a little… more. Soon. It’ll happen. Right?
But of course there’s a deeper reason why it’s not happening. Very possibly fear. Fear of failure. Of being rejected. Of doing such a bad job that the ground opens up and swallows us whole. Hey, it could happen.
But it probably won’t. In fact, the only true failure is not doing anything at all.
Action: Whatever you need to do – whether it’s a phone call or a new project, or even exercise – do it badly. Just try it. You’ll learn from the experience, and the next time will be better.
You know that you need to deal with the hard issues. But it’s not fun. Perhaps there’s an easy approach to it, eh? How about the idea that you actually don’t have to try? Here’s a little procedure:
- Think of something that really needs addressing. It could be an email or phone call that needs taking care of, or even a task you’ve been putting off.
- Picture it in front of you. Take long, deep breaths while visualizing it.
- Whatever image that comes up for you, imagine it getting smaller and smaller. As you breathe more deeply, let yourself get larger and more spacious.
- Know that whatever needs doing is already done. It’s in the past. All you have to do is step over and do it, and it’ll nicely be behind you.
It’s late. Maybe it’s late in the day, or maybe it’s later in life. Perhaps you procrastinated – or possibly you were just preoccupied with, well, living. Paying the bills. Relationships. The daily grind.
And yet there’s something still nagging at you, that you need to do. Perhaps a creative project… a new vocation… cleaning out the pantry… or something you need to say out loud to someone you care about.
No matter what the task, when’s a good time to do it?
How about now? Yes, now. Right this very second.
There’s a good chance you haven’t done it because it feels overwhelming – either in terms of the project’s immensity, or perhaps emotionally overwhelming. (Or both.) So. What to do?
Action: Think about something you’ve been putting off. Take one small, tiny, little step. Just a little step. Move it forward One Inch. And see what happens.
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