3 Simple Tricks to Stop Procrastination

What is Procrastination?

As with all things in life, we can only find solutions to a problem once we know what the problem actually is. So to begin with, let's break it down.

Procrastination:

The act or habit of procrastination is putting off or delaying, especially something

requiring immediate attention.

As a species this has been an issue for centuries. Ancient philosophers actually came up with a word to describe this behaviour: Akrasia. It is when you do one thing when you know that you should be doing something else.

- Now that we know what it is let's move on to the why...

Why Do We Procrastinate?

What science has actually found recently is that there are two forms of mental environment that the world lives in- Immediate Return Environment and Delayed Return Environment.

Most animals live in the Immediate Return Environment. Humans live in what is known as Delayed Return. Essentially, most of what we actually do day to day is designed to have an impact on our environment later on in life!

For example, you might be trying to lose weight (future return) and to do so you know that you shouldn't be eating that donut (Right Now). This is where our brains divert from our goals. The immediate return of eating that donut will make me feel good, even though it is not good for our future selves.

The above is only one small sample, taking it further you can see that almost everything you do in your daily life, like going to work for someone else, is all about Delayed Returns. I show up today, do a good job, (hopefully) not get fired or retrenched and then get a pay check sometime in the future.

The problem with this is as we are always in the Delayed Return Environment, as humans this has led to chronic stress, worry and anxiety. Our brains have not evolved naturally into this kind of state. In fact or brains are essentially hard-wired as they have been for the past 200,000 years. Immediate Returns is what we crave.

Stress, as we know it today, is still governed by the laws that we had about 200,000 years ago.

Have you ever heard of 'Flight or Fight'? It's a natural process when stress is introduced into our environment. Ignoring the last 500 years or so of 'modern'ish evolution, stress and anxiety were hard-hired into us to help us survive. A hunter finds a lion coming across his path, gets stressed and then he either fights the lion or runs away.

This is a scenario on how stress is supposed to help us. It was designed to solve short-term high pressure problems and once the problem was solved, the stress went away.

Unfortunately, stress is now a common thing in today's' society - or more accurately chronic stress.

We continually find ourselves facing different problems - How will I pay the bills next month?

Will I still have a job next week? Do I have enough money to survive retirement? Will I make up with my wife tomorrow?

All our issues these days come from the Delayed Return environment, they are rarely able to be solved right this minute.

So, how does knowing this help us?

Having this information known to us is key in understanding the 'why' of what we do. We are constantly at odds with ourselves about future rewards vs immediate. What we need to do is find a way to bring those future consequences (whether they are good or bad) into the immediate phase.

There is actually more pain associated with procrastination than actually doing the work, whatever it might be. The issue that we have is not in doing the work but rather in starting the work.

Motivation comes after we get started not before.

So let's move on to the 'How' of this article.

How to Stop?

Knowing what we know about Immediate vs Delayed rewards, there is a variety of strategies that we can put in place. Here's a few.

1: Bring the Rewards to the Immediate

One of the best ways to make future rewards move into the present is with something known as 'Temptation Bundling'. Essentially it is bundling the future goodies in with something that is

beneficial now.

- Listen to audio books you love while exercising.

- Watch your favourite shows while ironing.

- Get your hair done while answering emails.

2: Bring the Consequence to the Immediate

This is a simple strategy that might help. It won't be for everyone.

Make a deal with yourself to get things done and stick to it. For example, if you know you should be going to the gym every morning at 7AM then make a deal with yourself that if you don't go to the gym, you will give $1 or $5 or $10 to charity. Make the consequence of missing the task immediate.

3: Make the Task Achievable

Since we already know that it's not the task itself but getting started that is a big issue then making that task achievable will make you less likely to procrastinate. Once started, momentum itself will keep propelling you forwards.

1. Small measures of progress help to maintain momentum over the long-run, which means you're more likely to finish large tasks.

2. The faster you complete a productive task, the more quickly your day develops an attitude of productivity and effectiveness.

My crazy world has included successfully combining all the skills of a artist, photographer, designer, programmer, and marketer into one crazy life.

I'm available for guest blogging, article writing and speaking events.

~ Frankbr

Tazz 1 Pty Ltd

Follow me in my crazy world via my site

or Insta!


 By Frank Perez


Article Source: 3 Simple Tricks to Stop Procrastination
Previous Post Next Post
  • Will You DEVELOP A Viable Action Plan?

    Why is it, that two individuals, with seemingly similar abilities, assets, attitudes, experiences, etc, who are thrust into positions of leadership, often end up with far different results, and qualities of performance? One of the greatest challenges faced by leadership trainers, is being able to ef... Readmore

  • How Leaders GUARD Their Organizations

    Perhaps the greatest obstacle to effective leadership, is being able to consistently handle the often - numerous obstacles and challenges, which stand in their path! In addition to the many necessities and assets, one must possess, it is often the responsibility of a leader, to also protect his grou... Readmore

  • How to Make a Presentation

    Like most tasks or problems in life, breaking them down into small more manageable pieces provides for a better result or solution than getting lost in the mire.Step 1: Who are you presenting to?By knowing who your audience are, their interests, background and experience allows you to better tailor ... Readmore

  • Here's To 2017: Maximizing Your Year

    As the year moves along and progresses there are many who start the year with a fresh outlook on life. It's in the bloom of the year that new ideas and new ways of doing things are introduced. The conflict with this is that as the year furthers on those resolutions, new looks, and everything that wa... Readmore

  • The Disempowerment of Money Being Your God

    Thinking About MoneyIn my journey healing PTSD, with its varying symptoms, I have been listening to the voices inside me, and I realised how much of my thought process is around my provision. Worrying about making money, do I have enough money, will I have enough money.You could say I had a right to... Readmore

  • 5 Steps to Being More Organized in 2017

    It's not even officially the new year yet and I'm chomping to start purging and organizing. I've recently been bitten by the "less is more" bug and the clutter has been disappearing quickly from around my home. I want my abode to run like a well-oiled machine, so come 2017, I am definitely going to ... Readmore

  • The Intuitive Mind Is a Sacred Gift and the Rational Mind Is a Faithful Servant - Albert Einstein

    So the rational mind is the dominant in a person, but what happens if the intuitive mind becomes dominant?Let me tell you about an experiment, where a man did exactly that.Firstly, how the heck you differentiate between the two. What comes from the intuition is more in the form of feeling and that f... Readmore

  • How Do You Talk, Eat and Live in a Language You Are Learning?

    From teacher to learnerTo set the record straight I will confess: as a teacher I was a touch sanctimonious about telling students how easy it was to learn English. Then I arrived in Chile in July 2010 about the only words I knew were hola and amigos. Would what I'd been telling students to do work o... Readmore

  • Act Like Who or What You Want to Attract - Achieve the Outcome of Your Dreams - The LOA

    If the Law of Attraction had a mouth and a voice with words that can be heard and utilized more frequently by you and me what do you think would be said? I can only imagine something like this: Act or interact with the people, places and events that you most want to manifest. It's all a vibration, w... Readmore

  • Message From the Universe: Visualizing What's Ahead!

    "Lots of people wonder... Fewer take the time to really think...But I'll be darned, sometimes I think I could count on the fingers of my hand how many actually visualize the life of their dreams, as if their dreams had already come true, every single day, for just five minutes or so.Do it 'till you'... Readmore