5 Ways You Can Stop Procrastination and Become More Productive

Disclaimer:- This article is for educational purposes and is based on personal opinions. This article is not a substitute for professional advice, but general guidance. We advise you to always listen to your intuition and always do what is right for you.

It’s Tuesday morning and you are frantically working on your project due that evening. You are getting stressed out while also cursing yourself for not starting early.

Has this ever happened to you ?

A study has shown that more than 84% of the population demonstrates procrastination and about 20% of them have claimed to procrastinate daily.

So how do we deal with this yet indeed pleasurable deferral ? To help you to get on track with your work here are – 5 ways you can stop procrastination and become more productive.

• Motivation

Jeff Haden in his book ‘Motivation Myth’ , tells us that motivation is not the spark that keeps you eager to do hard work but it’s the results .

So if you are unmotivated and ever feel like procrastinating , ask yourself -” Does laying in my couch and scrolling through social media makes me less stressed or by doing the essay due in two days?”If the answer is latter then force yourself to get up and go work at your table at least for the first five minutes . This will trick your brain to accommodate with the new environment and hence give you the motivation to get out of the slump and go on with your day.

• To – do lists and elimination of tasks

Are you procrastinating a lot lately and still don’t feel the drive to do your work? This might be because you find your work too overwhelming to be done at once . By breaking them into baby tasks in to-do lists and doing them one-by-one , might help you to get tasks done slowly and peacefully without them being a burden.

Along with working , you must take care of the things that might pull your attention away , such as Instagram , YouTube or yet another Netflix show . Turn off all such sources and go on with your work in serenity .

• Two – minutes rule

Two minute rule is a concept given by David Alan , an author and productivity consultant , in his book ‘ Getting Things Done ‘ he states that ” If it takes less than two minutes , then do it now” . Small tasks such as filling up the bottles, watering plants and arranging your books , which all at once seem like a headache , should be done then and there without giving much thought , so that the brain doesn’t come out of its relaxing mode and the small chores can be done with no energy loss.

• Activate your mind

Do you feel like sleeping in your bed all day while cuddling with your dog because you have no energy to go on with the day?

This might be because of a hazy mind. To make yourself more active , you can do something stimulating like trying out old hobbies you never had time for , or read a chapter or two of your favourite book or you can even go for a walk with your dog. This helps your brain to relax and release serotonin , which gives you energy to do those big tasks of the day.

• Promise yourself a reward

At the end of every stressful day , where you have overcome your procrastination and get things done , reward yourself with a treat. Be it a slice of cake or a coffee from your favourite coffee shop . This will encourage your motivation for the next day and you will notice how good it feels to get things done.

Finally , procrastination isn’t something that can be resolved in a day especially if it has become a habit. The first step to overcoming procrastination is to recognize that you’re doing it. Then, identify the reasons behind your behavior and use appropriate strategies to manage and overcome it.

References:

Ali Abdaal, Youtube :How to stop procrastination

https://youtu.be/yBP1VjO9RSE

Times, Jamie Duchman: Psychologists Explain Why You Procrastinate — And How to Stop.

https://time.com/5322514/stop-procrastinating-tips/

Chris Elsden, Mark Selby, Abigail Durrant, David Kirk : Fitter, happier, more productive: what to ask of a data-driven life.

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=more+productive+in+life&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3DUhgX1jhUY78J

Ted O’Donoghue, Matthew RabinThe Quarterly Journal of Economics 116 (1), 121-160, 2001 : Choice and procrastination.

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=procrastination+&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3Dp0PbdlS4SYEJ

Angela Hsin Chun Chu, Jin Nam ChoiThe Journal of social psychology 145 (3), 245-264, 2005 : Rethinking procrastination: Positive effects of” active” procrastination behavior on attitudes and performance.

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=procrastination+&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3D4MKZ3R-Mcv8J