Thousands of articles are written on this subject while a lot of them were results of procrastination itself. Why do we procrastinate? Do we have answers for it? Some say it’s to avoid unpleasant feeling of a certain task; meanwhile certain people present an argument saying perfectionists do it because they doubt if the task is viable for their talent.
Whatever be the reason, procrastinating can be super dangerous; because you might be skipping an important task to ease the unpleasant feeling but you will be facing some serious consequences.
So here’s a guide on how to avoid procrastination:
- Eliminating negativity associated with the activity: If a task or activity has negativity surrounding it, it’ll be impossible to do it. So why not try to eliminate it. One way you can eliminate it is by, spreading out the work into different segments. Like if you’re writing a long essay of ten pages and you’ve 20 days to do it, split the number of pages you want to do each day and then complete the task on time.
- Have a timer dedicated for tasks: Doing tasks by having a dedicated timer for it will create an environment where you can feel the rush to perform well. Timed tasks will generate a peculiar interest in completing a task under certain limit which tests your skill and make you focus on the work more.
- Say bye-bye to distractions: Distractions can be worrying. They’re a bane especially when you’re scheduled to give a game changing presentation at 10 am next morning. So why not turn off altogether. Turn off your mobile phone, don’t listen to music if you’re getting distracted, tape your television; do everything possible to get you away from distraction that will hinder you from producing the best results
- Give yourself a pep-talk: This one’s my favorite. Giving yourself a pep-talk brings out the motivation. Your much needed partner is nothing but screaming your name out loud in front of the mirror and telling yourself ‘you can do it’. This technique has been used by the best athletes to achieve the most important landmarks in their field.
- Reward yourself for completing your task and punish yourself if you fail to: Just think of getting to eat your favorite food or getting to go on a vacation to your favorite destination as a reward for achieving your target. This will enhance your motivation to dive yourself into your work.
But other than these is there any other way of doing it? How actually to avoid procrastinating forever? Well that totally depends on behavioral issues. So let’s address this in a simple way that is by providing you the necessary info. Procrastination among perfectionists happens because they chase perfection everywhere leading to delay in starting work. Then there are people who procrastinate, because they think they could use their time better on certain other task than the one given to them. While you can cultivate certain habits to stop procrastination, there are some other ways of doing it too.
- Keeping a notepad: Keeping a notepad to schedule tasks is an easy way to tackle your procrastinating behavior. It will make sure you do the right task on the right time. It also gives you a flow mechanism which liquefies the unpleasant feeling by mixing it with happy feelings from the happy tasks
- Segment time for given task: The difficult part of doing a task is getting it started. So to lay foundations to your task, strip the hard parts into segments of 6 minutes or segments of 10 minutes. This way you will be focusing in completing the important parts within that period of time.
- Stop pushing yourself: Pushing yourself too hard at the start without any breaks too can lead to procrastination. After finishing a major segment of the project, why not go out for a walk or prepare yourself some tea? This will give you a refreshing feeling before you restart doing your tasks again.
- Multi-task: Multi-tasking is a boon for those who procrastinate. Divide your time between multiple tasks within a set period. This will not only keep your environment dynamic but will also help you achieve the task on time.
Procrastination for some people is boon, while for others it’s a bane. Most people highly oppose procrastinating but fail to do it themselves. One of top 10 colleges in Coimbatore is Karpagam Academy of Higher Education that has always taught its students one thing. That is do not procrastinate. Procrastination can make huge difference between one’s success and failure. The problem is we fail to understand that. Regardless how bitter the task might be, the end result will always be sweet. Thanks for reading this article and we hope, you keep on returning to read more such amazing pieces.
KARPAGAM ACADEMY OF HIGHER EDUCATION
(Deemed to be University)
(Established Under Section 3 of UGC Act 1956)
Coimbatore – 641 021,
Tamil Nadu, India.
Phone : +91-422 – 2980011 – 14
Email : info@kahedu.edu.in