Procrastination can hijack our plans and prevent us from moving on to better and brighter things. Sometimes it is easier to push things under the rug than to come at them head-on. We can feel very frustrated or unsettled with a long list of uncompleted tasks or decisions that need to be made. I am not only referring to our daily activities but also how we can overlook and procrastinate about our overall health and well-being.
We all procrastinate, it is human nature, but make an effort to become aware of when you are procrastinating and consider what is holding you back. Do you run from making decisions because of a lack of confidence or fear? Or tell yourself you don’t have time to carry out your task to full completion? We can come up with a million reasons to not do something but they are not good enough to press pause on your plans or your health. Baby steps, consistency and determination can move you forward in the right direction and bring you peace of mind.
While studying to become a coach, I learned that there are steps that can be used to assist us in overcoming this hindering trait called procrastination!
- Why? – Ask yourself “why” do I need to complete this? When we know the WHY then everything else becomes easy. Understanding the purpose will make completing the task more meaningful.
- Determine your destination – Typically, when we procrastinate we have no focus. When you know WHERE you are going, the rest falls into place. Completing a task means bringing you closer to your final destination. Whether that’s calling to make a doctor’s appointment, going to the appointment and following through on the doctor’s recommendations, these consecutive steps bring you closer to your destination – your well-being.
- Everything takes time – Unfortunately, there isn’t a light switch that we can turn off to avoid procrastination. For most of us, it is a learned behaviour. Slow and steady wins the race. Don’t be afraid of failure because we learn from our mistakes. Being consistent and patient with yourself while you make the adjustments is key. And remember, only actions create change! We cannot think, want, hope or envision ourselves into change.
- Create a list and prioritize – Create a list of tasks for each day. Only place 3-5 tasks on this list and no more. Start with your most difficult task and move to the easiest (prioritize). Getting the harder task out of the way first makes the remainder of the list seem very easy and you will be less likely to procrastinate. Setting tasks (ie. your list) and coming up with actions to complete these tasks, helps us create habits which, over time, become automatic behaviours.
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