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How do you feel when you don’t do something you were supposed to do?  Are you okay with it or do you beat yourself up over it?  I guess it might depend on the situation.  For instance, if it’s something that’s very important and you put it off, you might be beating yourself up over it.  But, then again, if it’s something that might not get you in trouble for not doing it, you may just not care at all.

So, when it’s something important and we keep putting it off, that usually means some consequences in the future.  This is called procrastination. I’m so guilty of this. If I’m not in the mood to get something done (no matter the importance), I will procrastinate on getting it done.  And it could be for a number of reasons. We don’t like the task, we don’t have enough time to get it done, or we just don’t feel like doing it.

Sure, some things might be okay to let slide but for most of our everyday responsibilities, we should be getting those done.  

So, how do we help ourselves get things done when we don’t want to do them and we keep letting procrastination get in the way?  

Let’s talk about how we can smash procrastination right in the rear and have a more productive day.

8 Ways to Smash Procrastination

Decide When You’ll Do The Task

Most times, we procrastinate because we think we can just wing it and hope for the best, but usually, we tend to fiddle around or get distracted and don’t get much done. Does that sound familiar? 

What if you scheduled these tasks instead? Making a plan ahead of time, like the day before, of the things you need to do will help you to get them done.

Pick a time, schedule it in your calendar or your planner, and don’t break this commitment to yourself. Think of it as an appointment that you can’t miss. Make your important tasks a priority. Don’t let procrastination get in your way. Schedule it and do the work when the time comes.

Make It A Habit

The more we do something, the more it becomes a habit. I know you may dread the task that you keep putting off but staying committed to it over time will form a habit. You just have to stick to doing the task regularly and eventually that dreaded task will become second nature to you. Making the task you dread the most become one of the easiest tasks you have to do.

Pretend You’re Not Going To Do It

This trick really works. Just get everything ready, get the supplies out that you’ll need.  But tell yourself you don’t need to do the work yet.

Most of the time, we don’t want to start the task because of the mental prep we have to go through. Instead, trick your mind by telling yourself you aren’t really doing the task. You’re just getting everything ready for when you feel inspired to do the work. Most times, once we get our minds into getting everything ready, we realize the task won’t take that long and it’ll just be easiest now to get the work done anyway.

Accept That It Will Never Be Perfect

Nothing we do in life will ever be perfect. Especially in our eyes. We are the hardest critics of ourselves so how do you expect to see something you did as perfect? You won’t. You will always see the flaws and imperfections. Instead, you need to accept that it will never be perfect, do the work, and be proud of yourself for stepping up and getting the work done. Don’t dwell on the fact that you don’t think it’s perfect. You’ll only be hurting yourself.

This is the hardest one for me. I’m a perfectionist. With my blog, it used to take me forever to write a blog post. But I’ve slowly learned to stop listening to my perfectionist brain and accept my writing as it is. And a lot of times, I’ll reward myself with a small treat every time I finish a blog post or write an email to my subscribers.

Break It Down Into Steps

One reason you keep putting off a task could have to do with the fact that the task is too big and overwhelming. Break down the tasks into manageable steps that you can work on one by one. Focus on getting one or two steps done a day and eventually, you will get the task done.

If your big task is getting your bedroom decluttered, break it down to just working on the flat surfaces first one by one and then move to the floor and work that in sections. Don’t let big tasks scare you away. Break them down and they will be easier to manage as you tackle your tasks.

Sprint Against The Task

Sometimes, we just don’t want to start so why not tell yourself you only have to do it for a short amount of time.  Set a timer for 10 – 15 minutes and tell yourself you can quit when the timer goes off. And bust your butt to get as much done in that short amount of time.  We can all do something for 10 or 15 minutes. 

I’ve done this with my dishwasher. I know I can get the whole thing unloaded under 5 minutes so I try to get quicker each time I unload it. It’s kind of like a competition for me.

And who knows, maybe after the timer goes off you just might have the motivation to continue it or move on to something else.

Make A Public Commitment

If you’re really stalling to get anywhere, put yourself on the line by telling someone or a group of people what you plan on doing. Heck, you can even post it on social media. Just be sure you follow up with those people whether you do the work or not and be honest. If it’s possible, tell them you’ll show them the work you did as proof. Accountability works very well when we can’t motivate ourselves.

Once a week, I’m on a call with my accountability group and we talk about what goals we’ve accomplished the week before and what our goals are for the next week. I don’t want to go into those meetings and tell my group I didn’t do something that I said I was going to do so I make sure I finish my goals every week.

Work With Your Personality

We all work differently. We all have our own strengths and weaknesses. Use yours to your advantage. Know what motivates you to start, what pushes you when times get tough, and what rewards help you to conquer your tasks. Once you know how you’ll work best, you’ll be unstoppable.

Final Thoughts

None of us want to procrastinate but most of the time, we don’t even realize the harm we’re doing to ourselves. That’s why we need to smash procrastination the moment it starts. And to recap the steps we just went over:

Decide when you will start
Make it a habit
Pretend you aren’t going to do the work
Accept it won’t be perfect
Break it down into steps
Sprint against the timer
Put yourself on the line
Work with your personality

Don’t let procrastination stop you in your tracks anymore. You can do it and accomplish anything you set out to achieve!

How badly does procrastination affect you?

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