FSS Newsletter :: May 2002

FSS Spotlight :: Spring into Action and Stop Procrastination

Question:
I am 44 years. old, and the world's worst procrastinator. My question then is; How can I stop? Urgent, please help!

Answer:
Procrastination is the easiest problem in the world to cure. Permit me to prove it. Think of a task you've been putting off. Now stop reading this column and go do that task. Don't come back to finish this column until you've finished the task. Stop here and go do something you've been putting off.

You're back? Congratulations! You've just learned how to cure yourself of procrastination. Next time you find yourself putting off a task, use what you just learned. Drop whatever you're doing and start working on the task you've been putting off. Don't think about it. Don't weigh the pros and the cons. Don't keep telling yourself you're a procrastinator. Just do it. Then your procrastination will be a thing of the past.

If you think I'm joking about this, or taking it lightly, you're missing the point. Procrastination is one of the greatest obstacles to success. And it's the easiest to overcome. All you have to do is to take action. Any action, no matter how trivial, will do the trick. In fact, the easier you make it on yourself to take action, the easier you make it on yourself to beat procrastination.

Think small. If you are so intimidated by a task that you just can't face it, break the task into smaller steps. Then tackle each step one at a time. Start with a step that doesn't intimidate you. Your don't even have to start at the beginning. You can start in the middle if you want, or you can start at the end. But whatever you do, start. The moment you take action--any action---you beat procrastination. Just remember, don't tell yourself to stop procrastinating. Tell yourself to start doing whatever it is you've been putting off.

The human brain can't tell the difference between a mental image of what you want and a mental image of what you don't want. Whatever you picture clearly enough inside your mind, your mind will try to reproduce outside in your life. So if you're thinking about procrastinating, that is exactly what you'll do. To avoid that, think about what you want to start doing (the task you want to get started on) instead of what you want to stop doing (procrastinating). If you really want to beat procrastination, turn that new mindset into a habit.

Whenever you're tempted to put off a task, drop whatever you're doing and start on that task. Do this for thirty days, without missing a day, and I guarantee that your procrastinating days will be behind you for good.

Avoidance Behavior
There is a special case of procrastination called "avoidance behavior" that occurs when you're trying to avoid a particularly intimidating task. Run of the mill procrastination is just a bad habit. With a little practice, you can correct that habit. But avoidance behavior is a far more challenging problem. The only way to beat it is to tackle it head on. If you're showing symptoms of avoidance behavior, try this simple cure and it will change your life.

When you start work each morning, choose the task that you most want to avoid and make that the first thing you do. It might be a phone call you've been dreading, or a conference with an associate, or a chore you find particularly distasteful. Whatever it is, do it first. Turn it into your mission in life to do it first. Tape the words "Do It First!" to the dashboard of your car. Tape them to your bathroom mirror. Tape them to your computer at work. Repeat them to yourself ten times a day. Write them ten times a day.

Before you know it, you will have created a new habit. Then, whenever you're faced with a task that you're tempted to put off, you'll hear a little voice in your head say "Do it first!" You'll start looking forward to tasks you used to dread, because you will no longer be afraid of them. You'll no longer waste time inventing ways to avoid these distasteful tasks because you will have conditioned yourself to do them first.

Procrastinate Your Way To Success
So much for taking care of the down side of procrastination. Now let's look at the up side. Procrastination is one of the most powerful success skills, a skill that can help you change your life. You've spent your whole life learning how to procrastinate---why not put it to good use? Whenever you're tempted to do something now, that will set you back later, put it off. Don't deny it. Don't forbid it. Don't threaten yourself. Just procrastinate. Put off until tomorrow whatever counter productive behavior might tempt you today.

If you want to eat a hot fudge sundae you know you shouldn't eat, just put it off. If you want to cuss out your boss, put it off. If you want to yell at your kids, put it off. If you want to start smoking again, put it off. If you're tempted to drink too much, put it off. The beauty of procrastination is that it gives you nothing to resist, nothing to rebel against, because you're not saying no, you're just saying later. When later comes, the urge may have passed. If not, just put it off again. Keep putting it off, and later will never come. Then you'll understand how to take advantage of procrastination, instead of letting it take advantage of you.