Overcoming Procrastination In Your Home Business
Article by Elena Fawkner
Well, it's Saturday again and time to publish another edition of A Home-Based Business
Online. It's also, I realize, time to write an article for this week's issue. Seven
days have elapsed since the publication of the last edition of this newsletter. Why,
you may ask, did I wait until NOW to write this week's article? Good question.
I'd like to say it's because I didn't have a minute to spare during the week. But
that just isn't so.
I COULD have written this article three days ago, but I didn't. Not because I didn't
have the time ... but because I CHOSE NOT TO. And boy, do I regret it. It's a
beautiful sunny day outside right now and I could be out
there reading some more of Patricia Cornwall's Dr Kate Scarpetta. Instead, here I am
sitting in front of my
computer.
What's going on here? In a word ... PROCRASTINATION. Now, mind you, I
decided last week I would be writing about
procrastination this week and so I have done some research. Just as well, you might say.
When I think of the time I spend procrastinating by, say, reading and responding to
email as it comes in rather than
allowing it to accumulate and dealing with it in one or two sessions during the day, or
making a telephone call or
making YET ANOTHER cup of coffee rather than knuckling down and writing an article or
updating my web pages or whatever
it is that I SHOULD be doing, I have to admit that I am costing my business time and
money.
What about you? Do you ever find yourself putting off some task rather than
dealing with it at the right time? Does
the need to rearrange the pantry cupboard or the tools in garage seem much more pressing
in the face of some task that
you really can't bring yourself to start? If so, like me, you're falling into the
procrastination trap.
So, why does it happen and what can we do about it?
According to one study, procrastination is caused by several "cognitive
distortions" or, in other words, perception
problems. These are (in the words of the study author):
1. an overestimation of the time left to perform tasks;
2. an underestimation of the time required to complete tasks;
3. an overestimation of future motivational states;
4. misreliance on the necessity of emotional congruence to succeed at the task; and
5. belief that working when not in the mood to work is suboptimal.
Or, in our language:
1. "I've got plenty of time to write my article. It's not due
until the weekend." Right. Well it's the weekend
now isn't it, and I STILL didn't do it.
2. "(On Friday) I don't really need to start it until Saturday. It'll
only take 15 minutes." Yeah. Right
again. It's been half an hour already and I'm only halfway
through the first draft!
3. "I'll do it later in the week. I'll feel more like it then. I
really don't feel like it right now." Since
it's the weekend as I write this, I guess inspiration didn't rain on
down after all.
4. "I can't do a good job if I'm just not in the mood." Yeah, right.
5. "I don't feel like doing it now and I shouldn't because, in this mood, I
won't do a good job." Oh, please.
WHAT a pathetic bunch of excuses! Time to stop procrastinating and take action.
Here are some action
change steps from "Overcoming Procrastination: A New Look"
(link below):
1. Start with clear, measurable, achievable goals. For example, I am going
to spend 15 minutes each day next
week from Monday through Friday writing the first draft of next week's
article.
2. Break the task down into bite-size pieces. On Monday I will write the
introduction, on Tuesday the first
paragraph, on Wednesday the third paragraph etc.
3. Commit five minutes to getting started then DO IT! At the end of five
minutes, decide whether to commit to a
further five minutes, and so on. This is an excellent way to
break inertia. Try it. I did, and 5 minutes
turned into and hour and a half and a completed article!
4. Get organized. Create three files: (1) catch-up; (2) keep-up and (3)
get-ahead. Put the long overdue
activities you want to finish in the catch-up file and set aside time
each day to work at the items in this
file, checking them off as you go. In the keep-up file, emphasize
completing priority tasks as they arise. In
the get-ahead file, schedule time to initiate steps to advance your
personal interests. These steps may be
planning or activities.
5. Negotiate with yourself. When you are tempted to substitute a low
priority activity (such as watching TV)
for a priority project, make watching TV contingent upon doing part or
all of the priority activity first. Then
watching TV will be an enjoyable reward, rather than guilt-ridden
procrastination.
Procrastination is unproductive and can even be harmful to your best interests if taken
to extremes. It is not just a
simple act of putting off until tomorrow what you could get done today. Studies show
that procrastination is a symptom
of self-doubt, self-downing, discomfort-dodging and irrational guilt. In turn, the
results of procrastination
can be a further stimulus for the erroneous beliefs that led to procrastination in the
first place.
So, break the habit of deferring action until a "better" time. There is
no such thing. If something needs to be
done, cut the excuses and JUST DO IT!
