Procrastination is the act of delaying or postponing a task or set of tasks. Believe it or not, drive and motivation to do your work doesn’t last long, and it’s quite easy to slip into the ‘procrastination mode’. Procrastination is the mind’s way to rationalize laziness.
the image above shows my own struggles with procrastination. I am procrastinating while writing a blog on avoiding procrastination.
I’m going to start tomorrow…
When we slip into procrastination, we do not tell ourselves that we are NOT going to do our work, instead, we tell ourselves that we are going to do it after some time. Doing this, almost instantly alleviates us from the stress of completing out tasks and makes us feel productive in an odd way. Without actually doing anything
As an MBA student, I have to complete various assignments every week and prepare for quizzes and tests as well. In the midst of all the chaos, getting things done without procrastinating is a constant battle.
Sit Down and Get to WORK..
Practically speaking, what one really needs to do is just ‘sit down and get to work’, and yet, in practice it is not so simple. With a lot of organizations, now switching to hybrid modes of working, employees are expected to work remotely and visit the offices only a few days of the week. This has made the problem of procrastination even worse.
However, like any other problem, procrastination has a solution.
The 4 Rules.
#1. A Cup of Coffee.
Having a cup of coffee in the morning, really puts one into the mindset of getting things done. Coffee which contains caffeine is said to boost productivity as it helps in increasing alertness, focus and concentration level. However like any other thing in this world, excessive intake of coffee can cause problems as well. For those who do not drink coffee, tea or any other hot beverage in the morning can do the work. Anything that can help you to get into a more focused mindset.
#2. A Handwritten To-Do List
As much as we love working on our phones and laptops all day, having a small handwritten list of To-Dos can help us increase our productivity and fight procrastination. Having the list on a piece of paper helps us focus on the most important tasks of the day. The same can be achieved through an app as well, but having it written on a piece of paper or a notebook, separates it from the rest of the workflow and allows us to focus better on the task. Also, the satisfaction of crossing out items on a list cannot be matched !
#3. Solitude — The State of FLOW
We enter into The State of FLOW when we are deeply immersed into our work. It is that time, when we are at our highest level of productivity. Maintaining this ‘flow state’ is essential to fight procrastination also. The state of Flow breaks when we are interrupted in our work.
The concentration breaks and the focus is lost. When this happens, procrastination sneaks in. The amount of time, energy and patience needed to get back into the flow seems a lot and the brain tells us to put away the task. This ‘break’ in the flow state leads to procrastination. A calm and distraction free work environment can help us to maintain the flow state.
#4. Remove Distractions.
Last but not the least, distractions can be the biggest reason why we keep putting our work away. It’s the thought of writing this blog vs. watching another video on YouTube. There are several ways to reduce distractions in your surrounding like, turning off phone notifications, placing the phone facing downwards, using browser extensions to block out distracting websites and many more.
The Bright Side of Procrastination
While it’s mostly considered bad for productivity, sometimes, procrastination can also be good. It’s okay to take a break once in a while and relax.
Procrastination can help us avoid burnouts and helps in boosting creativity. By putting away our work, we give time to our brain to replenish the creative juices. Many experts even say that procrastination teaches people how manage delays.
