According to researchers, procrastination has gone up recently. One factor has been technology. Throughout history, procrastination has been documented as a human characteristic.

Understanding the reasons behind your procrastination and the role it plays in your life is the first step towards conquering it. Without a thorough understanding of the problem’s underlying causes, it is impossible to develop a workable remedy. The solution to procrastination, like most issues, lies in self-awareness.

Many people find that learning how procrastination keeps them from feeling inadequate and remembering this when they are tempted to revert to old, ineffective procrastination patterns helps them overcome this issue.

Time management strategies and resources are essential for overcoming procrastination, but they are insufficient on their own. The most effective people are those who lessen fear and anxiety while highlighting the joy and benefits of doing things.

Inflexible people who stress the importance of work and cause worry can make people procrastinate more, which is counterproductive. For example, planning every minute of your day or creating a massive list of “things to do” could make you more stressed and thus more likely to put things off. Instead, break down large jobs, offer yourself flexibility, create realistic goals, and reward yourself with time spent on enjoyable activities.

… a man who procrastinates in his CHOOSING will inevitably have his choice made for him by circumstance… ~ Hunter S. Thompson

Why People Procrastinate

Why do we put things off? People may put off taking action because they believe it will make them feel better in the short term, even if procrastination leads to more stress in the long run.

However, research continuously shows that delaying raises stress levels. You could put things off for a variety of reasons.

Boredom, it makes sense that you are far more inclined to put off an activity until later if you find it unpleasant or dull. The allure of social media over a hated task, like paying bills, is something many can identify with.

Another explanation for your procrastination, you don’t believe in your skills. To function, you must have faith in your ability to complete tasks. You are less likely to start or finish an activity if you have a low sense of self-efficacy.

You might put things off because you’re afraid. For instance, you may put off necessary medical examinations out of fear of receiving a diagnosis. You’re more prone to postpone a chore if you are anxious about it. Besides raising your stress level, doing this puts your physical health at risk for an undiagnosed, untreated illness.

Procrastination may be influenced by perfectionism. People may put off doing things they think they won’t do well or succeed. Even if inspiration is more likely to strike once a person starts a task, they can attempt to put it off until they suddenly feel more inspired or have a better idea.

Delay breeds dangers; nothing so perilous as procrastination. ~ John Lyly

Procrastinators: You Are Not Alone

Procrastination did not originate from the Internet. Habitual reluctance has been a problem for humans since the dawn of civilization. Around 800 B.C., the Greek poet Hesiod warned against “putting your work off till tomorrow and the day after.” Procrastination was deemed “hateful” in the administration of affairs by Cicero, the Roman consul. And those are only historical examples that have been documented.

Since Cicero’s time, it has been abundantly clear that procrastination is not only disagreeable, but also dangerous. Procrastination is associated with decreased well-being and increased stress levels. In the real world, missed medical appointments and insufficient retirement resources are frequently linked to undesirable delays.

Over the last two decades, there has been a surge in empirical interest in the unusual behavior of procrastination. Psychological specialists now understand that it’s much more than just putting things off till later. Experts define true procrastination as the deliberate postponement of a crucial activity that you plan to complete, even when you know that doing so will negatively affect your life. It is a complex failure of self-regulation. Incapacity to control emotions appears to be the root of the issue, though a poor understanding of time may make it worse.

The dread of doing a task uses up more time and energy than doing the task itself. ~ Rita Emmet

Misperception of Procrastination

One of the biggest misconceptions regarding procrastination is that, at worst, it’s a harmless habit, and at most, it might even be beneficial. Procrastination sympathizers frequently assert that as long as a task is completed, it doesn’t matter when it is completed. Some people even think they perform best under duress.

In his book The Art of Procrastination, Stanford philosopher John Perry makes the case that people can benefit from procrastination by reorganizing their to-do lists to ensure that they are constantly completing worthwhile tasks. This viewpoint poses a significant challenge to psychological researchers. They contend it confuses the harmful, self-defeating habit of true procrastination with constructive, proactive activities like prioritizing, which arranges many problems, or contemplating, which tries to solve a problem. If there are various ways to make progress on a task, procrastination is the lack of progress.

In 1997, Psychological Science released one of the first studies to show how harmful procrastinating is. Researchers evaluated college students on a procrastination scale and monitored their academic achievement, stress levels, and overall health over the semester.

At first, it appeared that procrastination was helpful because these students experienced less stress than others, most likely because of delaying their work in favor of more enjoyable pursuits. However, the short-term advantages of procrastination were ultimately overshadowed by the drawbacks. Besides receiving worse scores than their peers, procrastinators also reported higher levels of overall stress and sickness. Not only did true procrastinators put off doing their tasks, but their well-being and the quality of their work also deteriorated. They concluded that procrastination cannot be viewed as either adaptive or harmless, despite its supporters and its immediate advantages. “Those who procrastinate suffer more and perform worse than others.”

We are so scared of being judged that we look for every excuse to procrastinate. ~ Erica Jong

A Disjunction Between Action and Intention

Although there isn’t just one kind of procrastinator, years of research have led to the development of various broad conclusions. Situational procrastinators postpone activities according to the work at hand, whereas chronic procrastinators struggle to complete projects consistently. An unpleasant work combined with a person who lacks self-control and is impulsive might lead to procrastination. Most delayers exhibit a propensity for self-defeating, but they can start from a positive attitude or a negative one (perfectionism, or fear of failure). 

Social scientists argue over whether the incapacity to control emotions and moods or time management is a better explanation for this disparity. If delay were truly as logical as this utility equation shows, the conduct would not need to be referred to as procrastination; rather, time management would be a more appropriate term. Furthermore, research has shown that procrastinators’ decisions to put things off are often accompanied by feelings of fear, humiliation, or guilt. This emotional component implies the story is about much more than just time management.

Studies have shown that mood has a dominating effect on procrastination. Subjects who were led to believe that their mood was fixed did not put off taking an IQ test. People postponed practicing until the last minute when they believed their mood could change, especially when they were feeling down. According to the results, self-control only gives in to temptation when it can lead to an improvement in current emotions.

While wasting our time hesitating and procrastinating, life goes on. ~ Seneca

Discovering Motivating Factors to Complete Tasks

Maintaining your motivation for productive reasons is essential to beating procrastination. When I say “productive reasons,” I mean motivations for learning and success that result in constructive, fulfilling emotions and behaviors. These motivations contrast with participating in an activity out of fear of failing, avoiding upsetting others, appearing foolish, or outperforming others through competing. Even while these are all justifications for taking action—and frequently very strong ones—they are ineffective because they lead to maladaptive, frequently negative emotions and behaviors.

For instance, you might not ask questions, explore new topics, try novel approaches, or take the chances required to discover new things and achieve new heights if you are worried about not looking foolish. Setting and concentrating on your goals is an excellent strategy to start positive motivation. Determine your inspirations for a goal, put them in writing, and use a goal-setting chart to track your progress. Remind yourself of your objectives.

Continuing to be actively involved in your work is another way to overcome procrastination. Being passive reduces your motivation. Confusion and nonsense are not interesting; they are tedious and annoying. Usually, you don’t want to complete monotonous or irritating tasks. Avoid that by trying to comprehend the information rather than remember it or simply “get through it.” Rather, (1) ask yourself (and others) questions about what you are doing, (2) establish your purpose for each work session, and (3) look for what is fascinating and relevant to you.

Your life is happening right now. Don’t let procrastination take over your life. Be brave and take risks. ~ Roy T. Bennett

Interventions To Address Delaying

There are several solutions for unwelcome delays. To complete a more manageable set of responsibilities, procrastinators may divide tasks into smaller ones. Coaching could assist them in seeing that they’re sacrificing long-term goals for fleeting pleasures. Research shows that procrastinators were prepared to give themselves meaningful deadlines and that these deadlines enhanced their capacity to finish tasks. Although they aren’t as successful as external deadlines, these self-imposed ones are preferable to none.

Procrastination’s emotional components present a more challenging issue. Blocking access to appealing distractions is one direct strategy to combat temptation, but it largely causes the self-control that procrastinators lack. Finding something enjoyable or valuable about the activity at hand is the best method to get rid of the need for temporary mood enhancers. You need to delve a little further and find some personal meaning in that task or learn how to savor those parts of the task you enjoy.

A widespread cultural change that rewards early arrivals rather than penalizes tardiness. Although a good deal of may find success with the tough love method, self-forgiveness may be the most effective personal treatment for procrastination. Procrastinating was less likely to cause people to put off preparing for a future event if they could forgive themselves. Research serves as a reminder that procrastination is a self-inflicted injury that erodes time, the most precious resource in the world.

You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

Ways to Eliminate Procrastination

• Increase the Immediacy of Action’s Benefits

Avoiding procrastination is made easier if you can figure out how to make the advantages of long-term decisions more apparent right away. Using a tactic called temptation bundling is one of the best methods to bring incentives from the future into the present.

Research in behavioral economics gave rise to the idea of temptation bundling. To put it simply, the technique recommends combining a behavior that feels good in the short term with a habit that will benefit you in the long term.

Only do [something you love] while doing [what you normally procrastinate] is the basic formula.

A few typical instances of temptation bundling are:

• While working out, only play your favorite podcasts or audiobooks.
• Get a pedicure just when you’re catching up on past-due emails.
• Watch your favorite TV only when you’re doing housework.
• Eat at your favorite restaurant when you’re meeting with a challenging coworker once a month.

The best way to get started? Quit talking and start doing. ~ Walt Disney

2. Make Procrastination’s Effects More Instantaneous

You can be made to pay for your procrastination sooner rather than later in several ways. For instance, if you work out alone, missing your session the following week won’t have a significant effect on your life. Missing that one workout won’t cause your health to decline right away. The consequences of putting off exercising only become unpleasant after weeks or months of indolence. However, the consequences of skipping your workout become more obvious if you agree to work out with a friend on Monday at 7 a.m. You look like a jerk if you skip this one workout.

Nothing so fatiguing as the eternal hanging on of an uncompleted task. ~ William James

3. Create Your Future Course of Action

A “commitment device” is a popular strategy used by psychologists to combat procrastination. By planning your future activities, commitment devices can assist you in overcoming procrastination. For instance, buying food in individual containers instead of in bulk can help you control your future eating habits. Eliminating social networking apps and games from your phone will help you avoid wasting time on them.

By keeping your TV hidden in a closet and only using it on major game days, you can also lessen the chance of mindless channel surfing. To stop future gambling binges, you can voluntarily request to be placed on the forbidden list at casinos and online gambling sites. By establishing an automatic transfer of payments to your savings account, you can accumulate an emergency fund. These are instances of commitment tools that lessen the likelihood of putting things off.

Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone. ~ Pablo Picasso

4. Make the Assignment More Doable

The friction that leads to procrastination is typically focused on initiating an action. It’s usually less uncomfortable to continue working after you get started. This is a good argument to make your routines smaller since you will be less likely to put things off if they are modest and simple to start.

The 2-Minute Rule, which goes, “When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do,” is one of my favorite strategies for simplifying behaviors. Making things as simple as possible to start is the goal, and once you do, you should have faith that momentum will help you finish the task. By making it so simple to get started, you can’t say no. The 2-Minute Rule helps people overcome their laziness and procrastination.

Breaking down tasks is another excellent method to make them more manageable. There are two reasons to make your assignments more attainable. Long-term momentum is maintained by small steps forward, increasing the likelihood that you will complete major objectives. Your day will soon adopt a productive and effective mindset the more swiftly you finish a productive task. This second point—how quickly you finish your first task of the day—is especially crucial for beating procrastination and sustaining a high level of productivity every day.

The secret of getting ahead is getting started. ~ Mark Twain

Consistency Is Key

Let’s discuss strategies for establishing productivity as a lifelong habit and avoiding the resurgence of procrastination.

There’s a lack of a simple system for determining what is important and what should be worked on first, which is the reason it is so simple to revert to procrastination again. It’s also one of the simplest productivity strategies I’ve ever come across. There are six steps in what is known as the Ivy Lee Method:

1. Write the top six tasks you need to get done tomorrow at the end of each workday. Only six tasks should be included.
2. Sort those six things according to their actual relevance.
3. Tomorrow, focus solely on the first task. Before beginning the second task, work until the previous one is completed.
4. Apply the same strategy to the remaining items in your list. After the day is over, transfer any incomplete chores to a fresh list of six things to do the next day.
5. This procedure should be repeated each working day.

Why does it work? It’s easy enough to work in practice. The major criticism of approaches such as this one is that they are overly simplistic. They don’t take into consideration all of life’s subtleties and complexity. Yes, there will be unforeseen distractions and emergencies. Ignore them as much as you can, deal with them when you have to, and return as quickly as you can to your list of things that need to be done.

We shall never have more time. We have and have always had all the time there is. No object is served in waiting until next week or even until tomorrow. Keep going day in and day out. Concentrate on something useful. Having decided to achieve a task, achieve it. ~ Arnold Bennett

Why This Tatic Works?

It compels you to make tough choices. I believe setting boundaries for oneself has power. Pruning your ideas and eliminating everything that isn’t required is the best course of action when you have too many ideas or are feeling overburdened by everything you need to get done. You will get sidetracked by everything if you don’t commit to anything.

Starting most tasks is the largest obstacle to completing them. This approach requires you to choose your first assignment the evening before. As a writer, I can spend three or four hours deciding what to write about, so this tactic has been really helpful. However, I can wake up and begin writing right away if I decide the night before. It’s straightforward but effective. Starting is as crucial as succeeding at all in the beginning.

Focus on one thing at a time. Multitasking is popular in today’s society. The misconception around multitasking is that being busy equates to being productive. It’s the complete opposite. Better work results from having fewer priorities. One trait that unites everyone is attention. The explanation is straightforward. If you’re continuously splitting your time ten different ways, you can’t be excellent at just one thing. Consistency and concentration are necessary for mastery.

Whatever approach you choose, the main idea is to start each day with the most crucial work and let the momentum from that task carry you into the next.

…the best possible way to prepare for tomorrow is to concentrate with all your intelligence, all your enthusiasm, on doing today’s work superbly today. That is the only possible way you can prepare for the future. ~ Dale Carnegie

Moving Forward Not Procrastinating

Using visual signals to trigger your behaviors and track your progress is another strategy to break free from the trap of chronic procrastination. Visual signals serve as a reminder to start a behavior. When your surroundings correctly encourage you, it’s much simpler to maintain healthy habits.

Everyone agrees that consistency is a crucial element of success. Because it’s an integrated measuring system, a visible sign, such as a calendar that records your progress, helps you avoid that pitfall. You can see how far you’ve come just by looking at your calendar. The impact of visual cues on motivation can be compounding. It’s normal to feel more driven to stick with the habit as you see the tangible results of your success growing. One of the best ways to inspire yourself to take your next productive action is to look at your past progress.

Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can’t buy more hours. Scientists can’t invent new minutes. And you can’t save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you’ve wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow. ~ Denis Waitley

As you become more mindful of the moments in your life in which you procrastinate and become courageous about overcoming this area of your life, happiness is the natural outcome.

Do you need help to notice the magic in your life?  Are you in need of support in overcoming procrastination?  Do you want a strategy to help you create a marvelous life?  If so, please contact me and you can put together an action plan for you to be authentically you and inspire you to love the life you have.

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Article Name

How To Overcome Procrastination And Why It's Vital To Empower Yourself

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Procrastination disempowers you and your ability to live the life you desire. Overcome the underlying fear that causes you to delay life.

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Terri Kozlowski

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Kozmic Soul Solutions LLC

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