Stop procrastinating and start living ♡

Ahh procrastination. 

That funny thing that swallows our days whole as we type, swipe, watch and film our lives away. Or do pointless jobs that seem of the highest importance in the moment. 

Procrastination stems from wanting or needing to get something done, but then pressurising yourself so much that you don't actually do anything; and then feeling guilty afterwards. 

Why do we procrastinate? 

I think there are two main reasons: 

1. We don't actually want to do the thing we are putting off,

Or

2. We believe we are incapable of doing said thing that we are putting off doing. 

Reason number one is linked to monotonous tasks such as work tasks, whether those are from your 9-5 or school or another source. We procrastinate doing them either because we dislike our job, or we feel there is too much to do so we can't possibly get it all done and we don't know where to begin. Enter procrastination. We'll put it off until there aren't any hours left in the day and you leave it another day closer to the deadline. 

This can also apply to that business idea you had or that book you were going to read, think to yourself: do I just not want to? Will it better my life in any way? Am I excited to do this project? Because if the answer is no, then stop putting pressure on yourself to do it. 

Reason number two stems from a limiting belief in yourself that you feel you aren't actually good enough or capable of completing the task or idea that you had. You may not even realise that this is the case. Think about that goal you have that you never actually work towards. Think about why you keep putting it off, is it because you don't have time? Or is it actually because you don't think you can do it? There is always time. So I guarantee that it is the latter. 

Does the project that you are putting off lead to something better for yourself or life? Maybe it's going to the gym, or starting an online course or business. Maybe you are actually scared that you will succeed, and you'll have to stop moaning that you hate where you are currently at in life. Seems harsh, but I'm serving the truth. I know I've procrastinated doing tasks to the point that I feel guilty and can moan that I am not where I want to be, when really it is myself sabotaging my potential success through procrastination. 

Allow yourself to at least get the chance to succeed, don't fall down before you even begin the race.

So how do we beat procrastination?

- Don't bite off more than you can chew. Stop setting yourself so many tasks to complete in one day. Be realistic. Start with the most important 3 tasks per day and then it will feel amazing when you complete those and potentially get more done. Do not be your own worst enemy.

- Relying on motivation will not get you results. No one is motivated 100% of the time. It is about being disciplined and carving out the time in your busy schedule to do certain things. To work on that business venture, write that blog post, film that video, go for a run. When you are disciplined and turn off social media and the TV for that set amount that you have chunked out, you will stop procrastination in it's tracks.

- When you feel overwhelmed with the amount of tasks you have to do, break them down into bitesized chunks. If you create a roadmap to completion for all of your tasks then they will instantly feel more manageable and you will be less likely to procrastinate.

- Give yourself breaks. It is not healthy or realistic to work hours upon hours with no break. You will be more productive if you give yourself regular short and disciplined breaks. These will be guilt free periods of time when you can do the scrolling, catching up and lazing around.

- A lot of it comes from within. If you have done the inner work then you will know in yourself what you are capable of achieving. You will set yourself realistic goals and sign post them till completion.

- Don't overthink it. So much procrastination stems from thinking and thinking about a project or task. Thinking about how long it will take or how many steps you need to take to get to the end result. If you just start doing, without thinking, then you will instantly get more done and beat procrastination.

Lots of love,

Vicki 

x x x