I’d been meaning to write a new blog post for some time, but kept putting it off till I was “in the mood” to get into it. Alas, it’s almost a month later, and still somehow the mood hasn’t found me. The bottom line is if you’re waiting to get into the right mood to get anything done, you’ll most likely not get much done. Procrastination is one of the main barriers blocking us from getting up, doing the necessary, making the right decisions, and living the dream life we want. Recent studies have shown that people regret more the things they haven’t done than the things they have done. Also, feelings of regret and guilt resulting from missed opportunities tend to stay with people much longer. So stop waiting to be in the right mood, stop waiting to finish that certification, stop waiting till the time is right…and just start doing. #somedayistoday
Sometimes all our opportunities seem to be on our fingertips, but we can’t seem to reach them. When you procrastinate, you waste time that you could be investing in something meaningful. Time wasted amounts to lost opportunities, which is very costly. If you can overcome this fierce urge, you will be able to accomplish more and in doing so, better utilize the potential that your talent has to offer. We now know that the world today is conducive to procrastinating and learning how to overcome it is, therefore, one of the most important skills you can understand. Here are the three tools we use to attempt to overcome procrastination on a daily basis:
Inspiration
Have inspired goals. Too often, we find ourselves chasing dreams and aspirations that don’t belong to us. We want to get that next promotion…because someone else got it. We want to get a bigger house…because we’re trying to keep up with the Jones. While there is nothing wrong with these goals, it’s important to assess whether you want them for you, or for others. How inspired are the goals you’re currently tackling? Do they fit into the bigger picture of the life you want to live? Or do they stand out like a sore thumb? It’s important to make sure you’re spending your energy working towards what you actually want. Inspiration plays a big role in keeping us excited about the activities and goals we are working towards. Every time you are up against something, you have to summon up the energy to push you through. For instance, if you are trying to lose weight, every decision about what you are putting into your mouth is a fight. You might say it is the one last time or I should double the exercise in the gym tomorrow. You have to find yourself worthy to stand against it and fight. Inspiration awakens us to new possibilities by allowing us to transcend our ordinary experiences and limitations. Inspiration propels a person from apathy to potential and transforms the way we perceive our capabilities. If you’re struggling to find the passion to tackle your goals, make sure they are indeed “inspired” goals to start with.
Motivation
What role does motivation play in getting us to move from inaction to action? Motivation is a general desire and/or willingness to do something. Not much gets done without motivation. As such, motivation is a crucial, almost magical, ingredient in energizing us to show up for ourselves and our goals. However, most of us know how easily we can move from being motivated to not. It’s important to understand that motivation is in fact a depleting resource. What that means is at any given point, you only have a certain amount of motivation to devote towards getting work done. That being the case, it’s important to allocate your motivation strategically to ensure you’re putting it towards the items that will best propel you towards your goals. The good thing about motivation is while it can be a depleting resource, the more you use it towards accomplishing the goals that matter, the more motivated you become to knock off more items on your to-do list. So even when you are low on motivation or do not have the resources (mentally, physically, financially, spiritually) to push through whatever roadblocks you may encounter along the way, one way to rig the system is to focus your energy on doing the thing that is either the most inspired, or the item that is a critical lynchpin to getting other items done. Chances are if you are able to find the energy to get that inspired activity accomplished, you’ll be rewarded with more motivation to work to devote to other items. When you find yourself struggling to work done, focus your energy on the most inspired activities first, and watch your motivation tank miraculously refill itself.
Diversification
Lastly, consider working on multiple projects at a time. Juggling projects can help to overcome the mental fatigue one may experience with one project. I know this goes against the advice of focusing on doing just one thing to completion at a time, but it’s worked for me. We are all wired differently, and you have to do what works best for you…not what conventional wisdom dictates. I’ve found that when I get bored with one thing, I can simply shift focus to something else on my list to keep productive without too much effort. This shift gives me the new wind and replenishes my motivation bucket to keep working, as opposed to wasting time scrolling through Instagram or doing something equally as unproductive. The key here is to have thought about the most inspired goals you are working on, and having them at the forefront of your mind, so that you can easily shift between them on a daily basis. When you’re not focused entirely on just one thing, you take the pressure off yourself and the potential outcomes of that thing, and simply do. You also give yourself to have multiple opportunities to get several “wins” during the day by working on different projects at a time. After all, there’s a reason the adage “don’t put all of your eggs in one basket” has stood and continues to stand the test of time.
In conclusion, when you find yourself with an endless list of to-dos and a growing list of excuses as to why you can let things sit for yet another day, consider leveraging inspiration, motivation, and diversification to effectively slay the procrastination dragon.
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