NOVEMBER 08, 2023
The only guide you'll ever need to beat procrastination
Here's what 99% of people think when they procrastinate:
"I'm so lazy and unproductive, I just can't get anything done, ughhhhh."
But procrastination isn’t about laziness.
It is a way of coping with challenging emotions, such as boredom, anxiety, insecurity, fear or frustration.
Today, I’m sharing the only guide you’ll ever need to beat procrastination (seriously).
But first: not all forms of delay are procrastination.
‘Strategic delay’ is about deliberately creating time pressure as a motivational tool - knowing that you perform better closer to a deadline.
(So if that’s what you’re doing, carry on).
With that out of the way, let’s dig in.👇
Understand your Motivation
When you’re procrastinating, you’re not motivated to do the task at hand.
You might be thinking 'duh', but trust me, it is crucial to understand your motivation in order to beat your procrastination.
So bear with me.
Your motivation to complete a task is determined by these 4 things:
Hat tip to Piers Steel, a leading researcher on procrastination, who explains this in his book “Procrastination Equation”.
Keep these 4 things in mind (or re-read them) as we proceed.
How to beat procrastination
Okay, so now that we know this, what can you do when you notice you’re procrastinating?
(That's really step 0 – you have to notice and acknowledge it).
STEP 1: Determine the cause
Ask yourself why you’re procrastinating. What are you truly avoiding?
This doesn’t need to be perfect, but investigate which aspect of your motivation is most affected – the most likely cause.
(Scroll back up if you forgot what determines your motivation for the task).
Ask, for example:
STEP 2: Address the cause
Depending on the root cause you’ve identified, choose one of the methods below.
Don't try to do them all at once.
Find one method for your most likely cause.
2.1. Increase Expectancy
Increase your perceived odds of getting the reward for this task.
2.2. Increase value
Make the task more pleasant and/or rewarding.
2.3 Decrease Impulsiveness
Become less susceptible to the delay of the reward.
2.4 Decrease Delay
Influence the time between the task and the reward, or the salience of the reward.
Note: Alex Vermeer created a brilliant, simple visual guide taking you through the first 3 sub-steps here. I reference it frequently.
STEP 3: Don’t try to be perfect.
Phew, that was a lot.
But I did promise to give you the only guide you'd ever need.
You can return to this over and over again.
99% of the time, one of the bullet points above will do the trick.
To summarize:
Save this, use these steps, and you will be amazed at how much less you procrastinate in just a few months.
Rooting for you,
Charlotte
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