If you're anything like me, you'll often find yourself in a seemingly endless tussle with that personal nemesis known as procrastination. It's rarely something we seek out, and procrastination does tend to work against us more often than for us. It's usually triggered by either a change in circumstances that can't be helped, or as is more often the case insufficient motivation to make a start on a task.
What's effective for each of us in terms of tackling procrastination or minimizing how often it prevents us from acting on our to-do list will vary depending on personality. But there are a few different things that I've tried in the past and found helpful, so perhaps some of them will work for you too.
Forgive Yourself - Do you tend to scold yourself for missing a deadline or simply not being able to complete the goals you'd set yourself for the week? Well, one study has shown that people who manage to forgive themselves for having procrastinated, are less likely to procrastinate as much in future. So if you suffer from chronic procrastination, this step of learning to forgive yourself could be the best place to start.
A common pitfall, especially for perfectionists is the idea that now is not the right time to start a task. But the truth is, such a time of perfect conditions may never come, so it's not the best reason to put off making a start. Waiting for an auspicious sign, or the stars to align so to say, is ultimately just denying yourself the chance to get the task done earlier. Remembering that making some progress is preferable to making no progress, whether the outcome is perfect or not.
Define Success - Things change. Parameters or goalposts can move. Circumstances, priorities and expectations shift. This means that we may need to adjust our definition of success to match these changes. Our expectations are hugely important in how motivated we are to action a task. If you find that you've run out of time or resources to complete your original goal, then instead of beating yourself up over a likely failure, change your expectations. This means re-defining what success now looks like given the changed circumstances, so that your motivation doesn't completely evaporate.
Re-defining what success looks like means adjusting the goal, which could involve seeking an extension on a deadline, or perhaps lowering your target to something which is now actually achievable. Just don't over-compensate and lower the goal too much, because if you diminish the value you assign to the new definition of success, then you'll be less motivated and feel less rewarded having achieved it.
Remove Distractions - We have a lot of demands for our attention in modern life, most of them coming from electronic notifications. So actively minimizing any potential distractions is very important. A good place to start is by clearing your workspace, this includes removing anything from your desk that you don't need for the task, as well as closing tabs on your browser and any unrelated programs that aren't necessary.
Some people like to leverage the '5S' acronym as a handy way to remember how to keep their workspace tidy, i.e. Straighten up - decide what you need; Store - everything in its place; Shine - clean it up; Sanitize - make it safe; Strive - to complete these every day. You can read more on 5S here.
Prepare - Prepare for the task by making sure your physical needs have been met, i.e. you've had something to eat, have grabbed a drink, have been to the bathroom, and gone for a quick walk to get some fresh air if you're feeling tired. Make sure you're comfortable when about to start, i.e. at a standing desk or seated with good posture, and wearing comfortable clothing. Lastly, turn off electronic distractions by putting your phone and computer on silent, or even disconnect from the internet altogether.
Tidy Workspace - If your workspace isn't working for you right now, such is if there's nearby construction happening, then consider trying a different location. This could be at a coffee shop or library. Just remember not to get hung-up on finding a perfect workspace, because the notion of perfect becomes a justification for postponing. Also, keep a notepad handy to jot down any tasks that need doing later which might pop into your head, so that they don't serve as distractions from your current task.
Effort Focus - Instead of focusing on the desired outcome, aim to be clear on the amount of time you're going to put into the task, i.e. input vs output, or effort vs outcome. Such as, decide to work for 25 minutes at a time with a 5 minute break. This is known as the Pomodoro technique and there are apps for it that you can download. This technique will help you to stay on track by getting into a rhythm, rather than obsess about how much progress you're making.
Create Sub-Tasks - Just as projects are composed of separate tasks, larger tasks are composed of sub-tasks. Therefore to help keep your expectations realistic and the tasks manageable, it's important to identify the individual steps or sub-tasks that are needed to complete your current task. This will help you to stay focused and not to be daunted by the size of the main task.
Set-Up Task - Sometime it can take a little while to get into a flow while working on a task. A good way to warm-up and ease yourself into the main task is by starting with some small related tasks, such as creating new folders and filenames. The bonus with this approach is that you'll be well set up for your next work session and be more likely to get into a focused state.
Hopefully with this range of tips you'll find something that works for you. Different personality types tend to have different motivations and expectations, so just keep trying various techniques until you come across one that works for you. Keep in mind that self-forgiveness is important, not to be overly concerned with perfection, and know just making a start is half the battle. I wish you all the best and good luck with your own battles in the fight against procrastination.