Procrastination Elimination

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PROCRASTINATION ELIMINATION 101 TIPS AND STRATEGIES FOR GETTING RID OF PROCRASTINATION ONCE AND FOR ALL Copyright © Felix Mack. All rights reserved You can connect with Felix at http://FelixMack.Net















Table of Contents

Introduction ................................................................................................................................................

4

Acknowledge Procrastination ...................................................................................................................

6

Identifying Your Procrastination Style ....................................................................................................

8

101 Tips and Strategies ............................................................................................................................

11

Prioritize ................................................................................................................................................

12

Schedule.................................................................................................................................................

15

Organize.................................................................................................................................................

17

Reminders .............................................................................................................................................

19

Task Management ................................................................................................................................

22

Accountability .......................................................................................................................................

26

Just a Game ...........................................................................................................................................

29

Association ............................................................................................................................................

32

Mindset ..................................................................................................................................................

33

Get Social ...............................................................................................................................................

38

Core Habits ...........................................................................................................................................

39

Motivation .............................................................................................................................................

42

Get Rid of Procrastination Once and For All ........................................................................................ Additional Resources ...............................................................................................................................

45 46















Introduction “Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.” ~Pablo Picasso Are you always putting off things you have to get done? Do you often avoid doing tasks because you feel stuck, stressed or overwhelmed by the need to finish them? Do you wait until the last minute to complete tasks? Welcome to the world of procrastination. You are one of thousands of people who take joy in the expression, “Why do today what you can put off until tomorrow?” This includes personal chores, completing projects at work, doing assignments, going to the gym and just about every other task you want or need to complete. The feeling to needlessly delay things or skip out on tasks is something most of us deal with every day. “I’ll do it some other time” may seem like a harmless statement. However, when you have built a habit of not getting things done, procrastination can have a significant impact on your happiness and success. In fact, procrastination procrastination may not only affect you but also those who depend on you to complete co mplete a task. At its worst, the habit of procrastinating can become so dangerous that it may have a negative impact on your relationships, wealth, and even your health. Because you are reading this book and likely already know that you procrastinate, my objective is to focus on solutions rather than the















procrastinating You may be asking yourself, “How can I change m y procrastinating habit?” or “Can I r eally eally st op pr ocrast inat ing ?”

The fact that you downloaded this book is evidence that you are ready to stop procrastinating. As you read on, keep in mind that there is practically nothing that is impossible if you are willing to put in the effort to accomplish it. Indeed, you were not born a procrastinator and you have within you the ability to stop procrastinating. It is a habit we develop by continuously putting things off one day after another, one task after another. In order to reverse that trend and do away with procrastination, once and for all, we need to: • Acknowledge that we have a procrastination habit. • Identify and recognize the reasons we procrastinate. • Implement simple strategies to help minimize and eliminate procrastination. Acknowledgement is half the battle, so you are already ahead of the game. Many people simply do not admit they procrastinate and therefore are not able to attack the root of the problem. Once you acknowledge, you can then identify and recognize your reasons for procrastinating. Next, you can implement some of the simple strategies in this book specific to your own reasons for procrastinating. My goal is for this book to empower you with the best ideas and















Acknowledge Procrastination Procrastination Procrastination is a habit, which means you do it regularly, in such a way that it feels like a normal way of doing things. In fact, some people do not even recognize they are doing it. Yet, excuses and running away from responsibilities and accomplishing tasks dictate their day-to-day actions. The first step for eliminating procrastination once and for all is for you to take charge and accept complete responsibility for where you are today. Forget about excuses or taking a defensive attitude when it comes to procrastination. When you find yourself putting off a task or falling into the procrastination trap, accept that you are procrastinating. Only then can you easily move on to identifying the reasons why and move forward toward a solution. The following are warning signs that procrastination is sneaking in. Know the warning signs so that you can instinctively understand when you are procrastinating: • Meeting a project deadline or accomplishing a task makes you feel burdened, and you begin to believe it cannot be done. You feel powerless or no sense of control over a specific task. You consider putting off the activity a better choice than the little time or effort it takes to cross it off your to-do list. • You seem unable to manage time. When thinking about your list of tasks or things you need to do, it seems there is not enough time on

















• You are indecisive about a task. You may think, “It may or may not really need to be done.” You are unable to make strong commitments about a task, losing focus and shifting easily from one to the other. • You get worried, frustrated or depressed about getting something done. There is a feeling that things will not get done as expected or the results will not be to your satisfaction.

The bottom line is that when you understand and acknowledge the warning signs of procrastination, you become better and better at anticipating them and can develop a plan of attack. This understanding has a strong influence on your thinking and mental attitude. It will also have an effect on how much effort you put into actually identifying the underlying reasons and subsequently applying solutions.

















Identifying Your Procrastination Style Procrastination comes in a number of different styles. After you have acknowledged that procrastination is taking place, the next step is to identify the underlying reasons. This varies depending on the individual. However, one way to quickly identify your reasons for the habit is to briefly learn about the different procrastination styles. In which of these styles do you find yourself? yourself?

The Perfectionist If you are hesitant to start or finish a task only because you want a p er fect fe ction ion ist is t p r ocr a st in a t or . You expect that perfect result, you are likely a per

everything will be accomplished to perfection and you work hard to set a high criterion for getting things done. While it is normal to feel particular about your tasks and feel like you can achieve perfection in everything you do, sometimes a perfectionist attitude will get in the way of completing something due to the tiniest details. This may cause repetition of tasks, taking several times to improve further and further while refusing to finally accept the results.

















Do you often put things off because you feel that doing something will give someone else power over you? Perhaps you have been asked by a family member, friend or coworker to do something for them. However, doing it may give you a feeling that they are in control over you, which gives you cause to procrastinate. procrastinate.

The Fearful A fearful procrastinator may be afraid, anxious or worried about how to do a task or failing at it. If you delay your assignments and other important tasks because you are unsure about the outcome, you may be procrastinating because of fear. Another characteristic of fearful procrastination is the assumption that you cannot compete with others. You avoid leaving your comfort zone, and the fear of failure holds you back from doing something that you feel others do exceptionally well.

The Dreamer Daydreaming may compel you to sit idly instead of working toward accomplishing something. In this particular style, you may always find

















The Over-doer This procrastination style takes on a lot more work and tasks than can actually be accomplished. As an over-doer, you overwhelm yourself with too many tasks, never saying “no” to adding items to your to-do list. As a result, these items are either half-done or not completed at all. Another characteristic of the over-doer is the tendency to “multitask” and the lack of prioritization. There is a feeling that working on multiple items at the same time can actually accomplish a lot more, when the absolute opposite is true. Additionally, there is a tendency to jump from one task to the other mainly because there is rarely a sense of what needs to be done first. While procrastination styles can be grouped into even more categories, I have found that most of us procrastinate for reasons within these particular styles. Do you identify with any of these more than the others? Knowing why you procrastinate is important because you may be able to choose tips and solutions geared toward a particular style as opposed to attempting to solve procrastination with strategies that do not fit your specific reasons. For example, if you are an over-doer, then task

















101 Tips and Strategies Eliminating the procrastination habit will require a consistent and sustained effort on your part. In short, you have to replace the procrastination habit with the action-oriented habit. When implemented, these quick strategies can help you in that effort. Some of the strategies may seem silly, unreasonable or even challenging. Others may seem almost redundant or out of context. And that is OK. I simply wanted to give you as many tips and strategies as possible. Go through all of them and choose some of the best strategies that you feel will work in your own fight fight against procrastination. procrastination.



















Prioritize 1. C o m p r e h e n s i ve ve Li L i fe fe P la la n

This is where it all begins. Knowing where you want to go and what road you want to take to get there has the potential of running over procrastination when it shows up. Design your life and go live it, as opposed to drifting aimlessly each day. This gives you power and control over your actions, a sense of purpose, and a procrastination-free life journey. 2. Checklist

This is one of the main weapons in your fight against procrastination. If you are not using lists (checklists, to-do lists), you are simply setting yourself up for failure. Trying to keep every single item you have to get done in your head clouds the mind, increases inefficiency and breeds procrastination.



















Do you use tasks that take long to complete as excuses for not completing smaller tasks? Go for the quick wins first. On your to-do list, identify those tasks that will be easiest to complete and get those over with at the beginning of your day.

5 . T a c k le l e t h e C h a l le l e n g e F ir ir s t

On the other hand, if you find that you procrastinate on tasks because they seem insurmountable, get to work on those first. With these tasks, the key is to get started and implement some of the accountability and tracking strategies to ensure you get the job done.

6 . C r i t i ca c a l Ta Ta s k s F i r s t

When everything is urgent, you become disorganized and overwhelmed.



















laundry or car maintenance, for example) that are not part of a larger goal. However, for items that fall outside of this category, be sure they align with your goal of exercising, spending more time with family, starting a business, or any other goal that you have set for for yourself.

9 . H o w L o n g W i ll l l It It T a k e ?

If I know a task will take 1 hour to complete, I would rather work on that task first, as opposed to one that will take me 10 minutes. For others, it may be the other way around, and that is OK. Just implement a system and stick to it. If working on items that are quick to finish makes you more effective, then go ahead and implement that strategy and move forward!



















Schedule 10 . S t ic ic k t o t h e S c h e d u l e

As you know, being disorganized can cause chaos. It can also impede progress and bring on procrastination. An effective way to stay organized is to stick to a schedule. When someone or something threatens to disrupt your focus, always always refer to your schedule in order to to stay on track.

11. H a v e a D e a d li li n e

Your goals and objectives, along with associated tasks, should have a deadline. If you find that your procrastination habits continue despite having deadlines, be sure to combine this with wi th some sort of accountability.

12 . T im i m e B lo lo c k s



















you typically wake up, just to work on that task. In fact, you effectively add an entire hour to your day as an additional benefit.

14 . T im im e R e a l lo l o c a t io i o n : Th Th e 1 M o r e H o u r S t r a t e g y

Perhaps you do not like to wake up an hour earlier. If that is the case, when you get to the end of your day, add the extra hour there instead. Set a timer for 1 hour and commit to only working on that one task that keeps getting delayed by procrastination.

15. 15 . P o s t p o n e L u n c h

Procrastination loves to creep in when other “scheduled” activities, such as lunch, are approaching. Develop the habit of beating procrastination at this game. How? Commit and continue to work on items until they are finished before going to lunch (or dinner). A technique that helps in this area is





















Organize 17. B r e a k I t U p

For example, if you have “start a website” on your to-do list, you can break it down into several tasks such as “get a domain name,” “find a web hosting company,” “find a designer,” “select a website template,” and other tasks that relate to launching your website. As you achieve each milestone, celebrate success, cross it off the list and move on. Procrastination is much more likely to leave you alone when you approach tasks in smaller, focused



















procrastinating. After all, can you procrastinate on a task if you are not the one doing it?

2 1. E l i m i n a t e

Look through your master list of action items. Are there tasks that actually seem unnecessary? Because I constantly offload things I have to get done from my head onto a master list, I often find that some of those “things” are actually passing thoughts that do not require action. If it is something that



















Reminders 2 4 . Yo u r O w n V o i ce ce

A bona fide “remind yourself” technique! That is, the sound of your own voice. Are you the auditory type? Do you prefer hearing things rather than feeling or seeing them? Record your to-do list and put it on your CD, iPod, mobile phone, laptop, tablet, desktop computer or home stereo! Don’t like your voice? Even better! better!



















(bad procrastinator!), put a system in place that sends you emails every 30, 15 or even 5 minutes!

2 8 . T e x t Al Al e r t s

As if calendar and email reminders were not enough, you can also set up alerts to be sent to your mobile phone. If you are prone to procrastination, take advantage of every means of technology at your disposal! A text reminder can be the difference between you getting that small task done or



















3 2 . T h e R e f r i ge ge r a t o r

Take the fight to the kitchen. That is, to the refrigerator, where you post all those pictures and grocery lists. Make some space for your to-do list and make it bigger than everything else on the fridge. The bigger, the better. Ideally, you will get sick and tired of looking at items left undone every time you need something from from the refrigerator. refrigerator.





















Ta s k M a n a g e m e n t 34. Switch it Up



















Seemingly insurmountable action items can often lead to procrastination. Imagine you have to lose 100 pounds. While this would be a fantastic goal that in itself is very achievable, a goal of first losing 5 or 10 pounds may lead



















4 1. G e t I n t o a R h y t h m

It becomes easier to complete a task when you get into motion and build up to a consistent rhythm. When you stop or experience a disruption, you



















tendency to tack on additional milestones to your task, which could lead to procrastination.



















Accountability 4 6 . Self-Accountability

























































































































































































































































Procrastination Elimination

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