Mastering-Life.com

We plan a whole lot of things but never get to it. You might hear the alarm clock buzz, turn it off and head back to sleep… or you may keep pushing back some important task that you really need to finish… Why is that and how do we overcome it? It’s quite easy when you understand what it is and why it is happening to you…

Procrastination is the habit of putting the wrong priorities on tasks. It’s not that you don’t know that it’s important – you DO know it’s important – but that it’s just so much easier to do those five smaller things instead of clearing this one hurdle. Quantity does not make up for quality though!

So why do you procrastinate and how can you solve it? The most common reasons are these:

1. You don’t have all the information. You don’t know where to start. The task at hand may be so complex that you just start something else as soon as you think about it or see it in your planner. You’re afraid. Afraid of failing. Afraid of making the wrong decisions. The solution is quite obvious: Get all the facts!Before making any decision, you have to know all of the facts. It is said that a problem well stated is a problem half-solved. So, the first step is to gather information.
   1. Take a piece of paper and start writing down the problem or the task at hand. Writing it down is important because
      • you will feel that you are taking action… in fact, you have already started completing the task the moment you start writing.
      • it gives you the ability to organize your thoughts, link things together and zoom in and out on the problem.
      • this will make it easier for you to grasp the problem and remember all of the steps towards completion of the task.
      • you will have a blueprint to refer to if a similar event comes up.
      • it will be proof that you can complete tasks, once you take the effort to gather the information and think dream up a solution.

      Don’t even think about just dreaming up a solution in your head. All the people that made a difference in life and that really got things done, all kept volumes of notebooks. Start this positive habit as well.

   2. Split it up in several questions or tasks that are more manageable. If some of these tasks are a bit daunting as well, don’t worry about it; when you have looked at the big picture, take another piece of paper and work on these smaller tasks.
   3. If the task is something you cannot do by yourself, you may want to gather information from other people first. After all, you only want to make a decision after you’ve gathered all of the facts. Don’t let this be a reason to procrastinate! If the people who you depend on for information, teach them this same technique.
   4. After you have gathered all information, look for the solution or the steps to take and put it in motion.
2. You are not motivated in your job.This is where the importance of the task comes into play. If lack of motivation is your problem, take a piece of paper and write down the following:
   • Why is this task important to you or to others?
   • What will be the benefits of having this task completed?
   • How do you want to feel when you have completed this task?
   • When now, will you start the task?
3. Your life feels dull and as if it is going nowehere.If you don’t feel happy, ask yourself these questions:
   • What would make you happy?
   • What are you good at?
   • Could you be more productive in another department or even in a whole new line of work?
   • Can you envision yourself giving something back for your community that will give you more satisfaction?

   I will go into ‘finding your purpose in life’ in much greater detail in another post later on.

These are a lot of questions that we hardly ever ask ourselves, sometimes because we feel that we’re not worthy enough of being truly happy as it seems that nobody around us is “truly happy”. That seems like a silly excuse now, doesn’t it?

Keep in mind too, that if you truly love what you do, you can be much more productive and make a better living as well. This does not mean that you should quit your job right now, but think about what it is that you REALLY WANT and it should be obvious to you now that you will need a pen and a pad for that.

While you are building that dream and are making a plan, you may find that you start to appreciate certain elements in your professional life once again as well. Once, we have a roadmap in place, whatever you are doing at the moment is a vehicle that will get us there. It got you to where you are now, and it will get you wherever you want to go, if you just think of the road ahead you will end up where you really want to be.

Have a great journey!
Chris