How To Overcome Procrastination

How To Overcome Procrastination - Be Aware

The first step to preventing procrastination is to identify its root cause. Ask yourself: What exactly am I delaying this task for? Write the task you’ve been procrastinating about on a piece of paper and reflect on the reasons you might be putting it off. Common causes — and ways to overcome them — include:

1. Unpleasant task – If the task feels boring or unpleasant, you may be tempted to focus on more enjoyable activities instead. Remind yourself that the sooner you complete it, the sooner you can move on to things you enjoy.

2. Overwhelming task – When a task is too big or overwhelming, even if you’re generally organized, you may feel inclined to delay it. Break it into smaller, manageable parts. Create a clear schedule listing exams, papers, and projects by their deadlines to stay on track.

3. Poor decision-making skills – If you struggle to decide what to do first, or even whether to start at all, you’re more likely to postpone tasks. Practice applying decision-making skills in your daily routine. For example, plan exactly how many hours you’ll spend on self-study versus recreational activities.

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How To Overcome Procrastination - ‘Smart Schedule’

To focus on completing the task and to overcome procrastination, the next step is to create a ‘Smart Schedule’ and a ‘To- do List’. Set concrete goals for yourself that are measurable, specific, realistic and help in completing tasks in a particular time frame. This is indeed one of the best answers to how to avoid procrastination and laziness.

Do not fill your to-do list with too many tasks; sort and break your tasks into small and manageable steps. You can rank the important and time-sensitive tasks at the top. Make sure that you follow the list and set intermediate milestones and deadlines for yourself. Completing the important tasks boosts your morale and motivates you for the next task. For example, make a to-do list of homework that you have received, and rank them in the order of priority (which you need to submit the next day).

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How To Overcome Procrastination - Breakdown Tasks

When you break down/divide your tasks into smaller chunks, it becomes manageable and controllable to accomplish them. This will help you figure out how to overcome laziness and procrastination. If the task is too big, you will never know where to start. Start with the big ones as they take much of the time and energy, and then move on to the smaller things.

For example, if any chapter from mathematics seems to be too long, then divide it into topics. Pick up topics that have the maximum allotted marks, and then come to the chapters with the lowest marks allotted.

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How To Overcome Procrastination -Eliminate Distractions

It is very important to get rid of all the distractions while studying, if you want to know how to avoid procrastination and laziness. There is very little chance that you would be able to prepare for your exams if you are constantly chit-chatting with friends, or have the television playing around you while you are studying. Consider the small obstacles that might get in your way, and try to get rid of them before getting started on a task.

For example, find a quiet place or a room to study for at least one hour without distractions from TV, laptop, phone or people. You can even go offline for the time you are studying.

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Believe And Practice In The 'Now'

How To Overcome Procrastination- Digital Detox

In the digital world that we live in, mobile phones, laptops, and other electronic devices are a major reason for our procrastination. Just as we are concerned about our physical health and go on a detox after we eat too much, similarly, go for a digital detox from your electronic gadgets for maybe, let's say, half a day. This would include all your gadgets. Take a break, turn off your notifications and work on things that are important to you. You would be surprised to see how much work you get done by the end of the day just by going offline. This might just be one of the most underrated yet effective answers to how to overcome laziness and procrastination.

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How To Overcome Procrastination- Reward Yourself

Even if you accomplish smaller goals, reward yourself after completing a task on the to-do list. Make studying more rewarding and enjoyable. This is one of the simplest ways to understand how to avoid procrastination and laziness. It is great to reward yourself by giving yourself some alone time to do things that you love. You should do this especially when you finish an important task that you have been procrastinating on. Take a nap, catch up on your favourite TV show on Netflix, call up your friend, etc. This will make you work hard and look forward to accomplishing more tasks often.

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How To Overcome Procrastination- Deal With Fears

It is okay to make mistakes, as long as you from learning from them. Permit yourself to make mistakes. Address your fears; this can be fear of failure or fear of making mistakes, or fear of success. Develop self-compassion and self-efficacy, which discourages procrastination.

Motivate yourself to complete tasks, set a deadline and work within specific time limits to complete your project. Either reward yourself at the end of the task or set up a punishment if you aren’t successful.

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How To Overcome Procrastination- Self-Discipline

To figure out how to avoid procrastination and laziness, keep reminding yourself of the long-term results, and not just the short-term gains. Adapting the goal-setting mentality and visualising the result will help you focus and achieve your target.

For example, focus on why you chose the path to study PCB in class 11 and appear for entrance tests ,because your goal in life is to become a doctor.

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Procrastinating may be an unhealthy habit that you simply need to avoid or stop as soon as possible. It curtails efficiency and wastes time. A number of these hacks might work better for most people, while some people may need a different approach. So, whenever you are feeling the urge to delay an important task, consider these tips and techniques to help you control it. Sooner you will realise that you do not want to stop until you get all tasks done, and that’s when you know you have truly overpowered your procrastination habit.

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Yashodhra Arora is a counselling psychologist. She holds more than 10 years of hands-on experience in HR and behavioural and career counselling of high school students, in India and the USA.