Article

You Can Learn to Quit Procrastinating

Perhaps you, like millions of others, made a list of New Year’s resolutions, fully intending to make some needed changes in your life. But now you find yourself a couple of months away and you haven’t gotten around to starting them. Don’t despair. You can learn to stop procrastinating.

It may be postponing learning a sport, tackling a new project, learning more about yourself, or even cleaning out the basement. You don’t have to wait any longer.

Steps to overcoming procrastination:  

Recall and record. List all the activities you thought would be a good idea to pursue. Put it on paper. Writing something down gives clarity and helps you see the pattern of your thought. (E.g. Learn French. Stop working past 6 p.m. Read the entire Bible. Improve golf game. Design and plant a garden. Clean the basement.)

List barriers to accomplishment.   For each activity you have listed, recall and record the reasons that inhibited you from pursuing it. What factors actually cause the postponement?   (E.g. Take golf lessons:   I sprained my shoulder the week I was supposed to sign up for the class. I didn’t want to get up at 7 on Saturday mornings. I was afraid I would embarrass myself in front of others.)

List satisfaction indicators.   What need(s) would have been fulfilled if you had proceeded to implement the activity?   Write them next to each activity. (E.g. I could have participated in the company golf tournament last August, because I would get exercise; I could have met some interesting people; I would have accomplished something.)

Re-assess. Cross off those items on your list of needs that are no longer important to you. (E.g. Cross off the tournament. Now our company goes bowling instead.)

Sieve and extract. Transfer to a new list those activities for which you have needs you still wish to have satisfied – i.e., those not crossed off the list. (E.g. I would get exercise.  I could have met some interesting people. I would have a sense of accomplishment.)  

Prioritize what really matters. Assign a rating of importance to each activity. Number each in priority order. Assign “1” to the most important activity in relation to the needs of its pursuit. Reflect on them over the next two days. Return to   your list and consider whether they remain your selection of personal goals that you have the motivation to pursue, that will not waste your time, and that you will feel better about no longer postponing.

Start. Now you can begin the new activity or behavior, knowing that you truly want to pursue it, with the written reminder of why you want to do it.

Paul Stevens, after working 21 years as a personnel manager, created The Centre for Worklife Counseling in Sydney, Australia. He is a counselor, broadcaster, and author of more than 21 publications on worklife and career management issues.