How To Deal With Procrastination

Some of my clients deal with it. A lot. Here are some thoughts on it. And a framework on how to deal with it.

Why do we have it?

Essentially there are three reasons why you procrastinate:

1. Fear.

It can be a fear of failure, of success, of judgment, or anything else.

How to deal with it?

Take one step at a time. Small steps are perfectly fine. Courage is when you do it despite being scared, not the absence of fear.

2. You hate doing it.

Either you will find ways to learn to love doing it, or have fun in the process. E.g. gamify it.

Usually, if it is something new, we feel uncomfortable and we tell ourselves that we “hate” doing it.

Some variations of it are:

• “It is so hard”

• “I am not enjoying it at all”

• “It is not fun”

Probably it is just uncomfortable because it's new.

The good news: this goes away the more you do it. Learning to tolerate the discomfort is part of the game.

We can practice doing it enough, become better at it, and have more fun doing it. The fun will show up at some point.

Or we can least learn to at least tolerate it. Can you tolerate the discomfort?

If not, hire someone who loves doing it.

3. Low desire to do it.

You simply don't want to do it.

Now, there are two options.

a) Either you absolutely have to do it, at least it makes sense to do it.

In this case, you can find ways to make it happen. Maybe you can turn up your desire to do that. The sign of that might be "I don't know HOW to do it." It's never the how. And always about your desire, your WANT. Is your want strong enough?

Another variation of this is the lie we tell ourselves "I don't have time for that." It’s not your time. You simply did not make it your priority, because the desire is too low.

If you can not increase your desire, again, hire someone, if you have to. Automate or delegate it. Be creative.

b) You don't have to do it. Maybe it makes no sense if you would take your time, slow down, and think about it.

In this case, chances are high that someone says you SHOULD.

Don't let the shoulds dictate what you do, and what decisions you take. Ever. Focus on something that matters instead.

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My name is Alexander Lossew. I coach leaders, teams, and extraordinary people to get from good to great. After working with me their lives, business, and relationships are transformed forever.

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Foto by magnetme, Unsplash