Its a popular and very unhappy club whose members often find themselves in unnecessarily stressful situations.
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In myexperience, procrastination is not just about willpower or the lack of it.
Procrastination is often driven by a host of negative emotions including anxiety or the fear offailure.
Exhaustion can also be a driver for procrastination.
If youve been working continuously for severalhours, it can be harder to self-motivate.
Rewardsalso play a vital role.
If youre someone who prefers visual aids, you may want to consider investing in awhiteboard.
Theres absolutely no right way to do this, you just have to do what works for you.
Be realistic
you should probably set yourself simple, achievable goals.
Dont write mammoth to-do lists.
Avoid setting yourself up for failure by jotting down huge tasks that wont be completed on time.
Its daunting and totally counterproductive.
If you should probably write a client report, dont commit to writing the entire thing unless its feasible.
Work in sections and give yourself sensible timelines and deadlines.
Break all tasks down into achievable chunks, that way youll feel much more focused and at ease.
Work is no different.
Break your day into sections based on what tasks you perform better before and after lunch.
If youre more creative in the morning, schedule all brainstorming sessions during this time.
Truth be told and lets be real one day or eventually will never, ever, come.
My biggest piece of advice would be to always try and get your work done before a deadline.
This gives you a little more leeway should unexpected tasks land on your desk.
Tune in to music or white noise to drown out noise or chatter.
So, I time myself.
Again, its all about breaking down specific tasks into manageable chunks of time.
If Im writing a feature, I usually allow at least a couple of days for outreach and research.
If you do this well, youll feel more productive and youll avoid feeling burnt out.
Just so you know, theperfect formula for productivityis to work for 52 minutes and break for 17.
Breaks are essential
you should probably take regular breaks every once in a while.
Dangle a reward
Who doesnt love a prize?
I know I do.
Its important to motivate yourself with incentives, or rewards, no matter how small.
All my friends thought I was a bit of a loser but I really had the last laugh.
Now, stop procrastinating and get cracking!
