There’s No Time Like the Present!

“Procrastination is the bad habit of putting off until the day after tomorrow what should have been done the day before yesterday.” ~Napoleon Hill

Does this sound familiar: you have something you really want to accomplish but you keep putting it off and don’t understand why? Maybe you chalk it up to “being lazy” and then mentally beat yourself up about it. Well, if so, you’re not alone. Many successful, high achievers struggle with procrastination and it’s rarely due to laziness. So if putting things off is getting you down, it’s time to refine. Here’s how…

Let’s start by exploring 2 keys reasons behind procrastination: perfectionism and fear.

Many people who grapple with procrastination are perfectionists. This makes sense because if self-imposed standards are impossibly high, it’s difficult to finalize anything.

Perfectionists often suffer from self-defeating thoughts that get in the way of task completion. Constantly minimizing themselves and their accomplishments becomes such an ingrained habit, perfectionists doubt that they can do anything “good enough.” So they delay, delay, delay and suffer all the while.

Another primary cause of procrastination is fear. Whether fear of failure or fear of success, both are accompanied by unhealthy thoughts. With fear of failure, thoughts such as these are common: “My results will be judged and I might come up short”; “If it’s not good enough people will think I’m a fraud”; “I may fall on my face and be embarrassed.” With fear of success, people have thoughts such as: “If I excel, the spotlight will be on me and I don’t want the attention”; “If I win, someone else loses”; “If I succeed, people will expect more from me going forward.”

In addition to perfectionism and fear, there are many other possible causes underlying procrastination which include: people thinking that the goal/task will be too difficult to accomplish, that it will take too long or they simply don’t know where to begin. I’ve also encountered people who have convinced themselves that they do their best work under pressure. Usually it’s just that they have become accustomed to the adrenalin rush that accompanies last minute panic. Sometimes it’s about control as in, “Nobody’s going to tell me what to do,” or “I’ll do it when I’m good and ready!”

Whatever the cause, the common denominator is that people have developed a habit of procrastination and it is creating unnecessary stress and strain in their lives.

I feel it’s important to make a distinction between obligatory tasks and discretionary endeavors. Obligatory tasks are things such as your taxes, expense reports, projects at work, anything that has negative consequences if the deadline isn’t met. Examples: you’ll get penalized, you won’t get paid or you’ll get fired. Often these are tasks you don’t enjoy so you put them off for as long as possible.

Sometimes anger and resentment hold people back from making progress. For instance, you might feel it’s unfair that you have to do a particular assignment at work or you’re angry at how much you have to pay in taxes. So you procrastinate, which only makes it more stressful and unpleasant.

On the other hand, discretionary endeavors are things that you’d like to accomplish for a variety of reasons. It could be for the sheer joy, to give you a sense of accomplishment or to make your life better/happier. These range from the small (putting your photos in albums or cleaning out your “junk drawer”) to the grand (writing a book or getting an advanced degree). Most dreams fall into this category and because they are not obligatory (meaning there are no punitive consequences if you don’t follow through), it’s easy to justify putting them off. In addition, many women put others’ needs and wants before their own so they tend to “backburner” personal dreams and desires.

With obligatory tasks, there’s no getting around it, you need to get them done. It’s in your best interest to move forward in a timely fashion so you can focus on other priorities. Here are some tips to apply (you can also use the ones at the end of the next section):

Be like Spock: I was channel surfing the other night and landed on Star Trek. It struck me how Mr. Spock relies solely on his logic. So take a page from his book and put your logical mind to work. Instead of saying to yourself: “I hate doing this and even though it’s due tomorrow, I’ll start it later”, let your logical mind lead the way. It will tell you, “Although I’d rather not work on this, I’m on deadline so I’d better start now.”

Keep it simple: sometimes people make a task more difficult than it needs to be. Pare it down to what truly needs to be done to bring it to satisfactory completion, then move on.

Reward yourself: treating yourself can provide great incentive. Tell yourself once you wrap up your project you can hit an afternoon matinee or get a pedicure, whatever will entice you to completion. Just make sure to choose rewards that are in line with your mission and save them until you’ve finished the project, not as an alternative to working on it!

With discretionary endeavors, decide if it’s something that you truly want to accomplish. If it is, you will be able to do so by making it a priority and chipping away at it. If it’s on the list just so you have something “hanging over your head” to make you feel bad (yes, that’s more common than you think), then these tips aren’t going to be effective. As William James said, “Nothing is so fatiguing as the eternal hanging on of an uncompleted task.” So make the decision to do it or take it off the list.

Here are additional tips to experiment with. See which one(s) work for you:

“Bird by Bird”: Instead of dwelling on all the things you can’t do related to the task/goal, ask yourself, “What CAN I do?” and start there. Even if it’s one tiny thing, it will move you a step closer to completion. I love this story from Anne Lamott’s book Bird by Bird:

“…my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he’d had three month to write. It was due the next day…he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother’s shoulder, and said, ‘Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.’”

And that’s the secret, just take it one step at a time and you’ll get there!

Trade in perfection for “good enough”: hearing that is enough to make any perfectionist cringe. But realize that perfectionism can provide an excuse for inaction. Practically everything is deemed not good enough and is either left unfinished until the last possible second or doesn’t get completed/submitted at all. The way to remedy this is by adjusting your standards so they’re more realistic. It might be difficult in the beginning but your completion rate will soar! Also, take a look at this: the need for absolute perfection might be a feeling that YOU are not good enough so focus on telling yourself that you are good enough and your work is good enough, too. Praise yourself for even the smallest thing. Imperfection and mistakes are part of the process so learn to embrace them.

Make a research “pit stop”: sometimes it’s lack of knowledge that stops people from moving forward. If that’s what’s holding you back, do some research. But make it just enough to get you going. You can gather other necessary info as you go along. Procrastinators love to find places to “park.” Consider your research a pit stop not a parking place!

Picture this: visualize how you’ll feel when you finish. The mind is very powerful so use it as your ally. For inspiration before you begin and whenever you find yourself stuck, close your eyes, breathe deeply and imagine yourself having completed the project (a would-be author might see herself at her book release party, holding her book and smiling). Feel it in your body as you visualize. Keep that image/feeling in mind to help motivate you.

No more excuses: excuses and rationalizations are the glue that hold procrastination together. Whenever you hear yourself saying/thinking one of your familiar old lines that stop you from making progress (“I need to do this instead”; “I work best under pressure”, “I have plenty of time”, etc.), stop yourself and replace it with, “Just do it!” or any other slogan that will get you going. Many procrastinators want to find the ideal place to begin but there is no such thing. It doesn’t matter where you start, just start. There’s no time like the present!

Until next time, keep refining!

Love, Melissa

Time to Refine Tips

1. Be like Spock

Take a page from Mr. Spock’s book and put your logical mind to work. Instead of saying to yourself: “I hate doing this and even though it’s due tomorrow, I’ll start it later”, let your logical mind lead the way. It will tell you, “Although I’d rather not work on this, I’m on deadline so I’d better start now.”

2. Keep it simple

Rather than making a task more difficult than it needs to be, pare it down to what truly needs to be done to bring it to satisfactory completion, then move on.

3. Bird by Bird

Instead of dwelling on all the things you can’t do related to the task/goal, ask yourself, “What CAN I do?” and start there. Even if it’s one tiny thing, it will move you a step closer to completion.

4. Trade in perfection for good enough

Adjust your standards so they’re more realistic and your completion rate will soar! Also, take a look at this: the need for absolute perfection might be a feeling that YOU are not good enough. Focus on telling yourself that you are good enough and your work is good enough, too. Praise yourself for even the smallest thing. Imperfection and mistakes are part of the process so learn to embrace them.

5. No excuses

Excuses and rationalizations are the glue that hold procrastination together. Whenever you hear yourself saying/thinking one of your familiar old lines that stop you from making progress (“I need to do this instead”; I work best under pressure, “I have plenty of time”, etc.) stop yourself and replace it with, “Just do it!” or any other slogan that will get you going. Many procrastinators want to find the ideal place to begin but there is no such thing. It doesn’t matter where you start, just start. There’s no time like the present!

Sources: Cal Poly State University Study Skills Library, San Luis Obispo, CA
Procrastination by Jane B. Burka and Lenora M. Yuen, Ph.D

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