By Ashley Wilson
We all have our moments of putting off tasks.
Perhaps you have a project you know will require a lot of brainpower and you don’t know where to start.
Procrastination is a dangerous habit. Procrastination can not only affect your productivity, but it can also lead to missed opportunities due to failure to meet an important deadline.
Source: Pexels
It’s time to stop procrastinating. Here are some top tips.
Understanding Why You Procrastinate
Sometimes you procrastinate at your job because you feel that you have to answer all of your emails, texts, and messages immediately. Sometimes you end up scrolling through social media or making phone calls that you will be able to handle later.
Find out why you procrastinate and create a plan.
If you are having difficulties because you respond to every message that comes your way then you should stop checking your devices for a certain period of time. Make sure you have time for correspondence in your daily schedule.
You can look for ways to make things easier if you procrastinate because writing your book or working on a project seems overwhelming. Do you have any tools that you can use? Can you delegate some of your work? You can also use your project management best practice and break it down into manageable parts. It will not be intimidating and you will be able to get started much quicker.
Optimize Your Environment
Optimizing your work environment is easy if you’re in a traditional office. You can choose a desk away from the noise and distractions of the office.
If you are one of many people who work from home, you may need to work harder to make your environment as good as possible.
You will need to ensure that your room has enough light to keep you awake and a reliable internet connection. It is important that you communicate with your family members about when you are not available.
You might also want to optimize your office space by choosing furniture you are comfortable using for many hours each day. Uncomfortable chairs can reduce productivity.
Attention Vampires are gone!
Get to know your vampires. These are the things that grab you attention and’sucker’ your productivity time. You might find yourself checking your collaboration tool messages every time an IM appears at the bottom of your screen. Perhaps you are a fan of social media. You might also love to surf the internet and click from one story to another.
Whatever the reason, if you divert your attention from the task at hand, it will take more time for you to achieve your goals.
If you need to be completely focused, turn off your phone and put your tools in “do not disturb” mode.
Although it may take some time to adjust to this new way to work, it will pay off in the long-term. Be strict with yourself. If you manage to keep your attention from becoming a distraction, consider rewarding yourself with a reward at the conclusion of the day.
Break down your tasks
Last but not least, procrastination is a major cause of stress in many workplaces. Some tasks seem too difficult or large to handle.
If you are anxious about a large project, it may be easier to break it down into smaller tasks. This will help you manage your time better.
Take a look at the tasks you have to complete each day and divide your schedule into segments. This will allow you to prioritize the most difficult tasks and make your workflow more efficient. You might, for example, start by eating the frog and then move on to the thing you dread most.
A schedule that allows you to move from one task to another, rather than trying to manage multiple tasks at once, is a better way to organize your life.
