Beginners Guide To Procrastination

Beginners Guide to Procrastination and Three Powerful Strategies for Overcoming the Habit of Putting Things off for Later

Why Procrastination?

“A year from now you may wish you had started today.”
Karen Lamb

Procrastination is a common problem for many people. It can be harmful to your health and career, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

In this article, I will present what procrastination is and why it’s harmful; also, how I overcame procrastination and three powerful strategies for overcoming the habit of putting things off until later. 

To overcome procrastination and get started on achieving your goals, keep reading ! 

Keep reading the full article and discover three powerful secrets on how to overcome procrastination.

What is Procrastination and How can ruin your life

“When you have to make a choice and don’t make it, that in itself is a choice.”

William James

Procrastination is the action of unnecessarily and willingly delaying taking action.It relates to ignoring an unpleasant and very important task in favour of one that is more pleasant. 

According to scientists-90% of individuals procrastinate to some degree! 

Procrastination is a major problem worldwide and has different levels, causes and consequences.

The latest surveys show Millennials procrastinate due to lack of time management, limiting beliefs and lack of focus.

By giving in to the impulse to delay taking action and procrastinate can have lead low to productivity.

When you procrastinate for a long period, you can lose motivation which can lead to depression and job loss. 

Millennials are the most educated, technologically savvy generation ever. Yet many of them struggle with something every bit as old as human civilization-procrastination. 

Everyone experiences procrastination, but some people beat it more successfully than others. 

Type of Procrastinators

There are two types of procrastinators-active and passive. 

The first group is the “doers”. They manage to live their lives without letting the things they must do interfere with what they’d like to do. 

The second group is the “waits”. They prefer to keep putting off what they must do and wait for the right time.

Here are 2 of the very worst habits could be holding you back every day: 

1.Fear dictates most of your decisions

Fear of failure, fear of success, even fear of taking action.To get past it we must learn to be comfortable in our own skin and make decisions from the gut. Also, we need to trust ourselves more and not compare ourselves with others or ‘play small’ in life out of self-doubt and lack of belief in what we can achieve. 

2. Not taking responsibility for your choices

When we feel like a victim, it’s easy to avoid taking responsibility for the choices you have made. It means you constantly blame other people or things for your problems and fail to see something you’re not happy.

There are lots of ways you can start turning these bad habits around today. For example, if you find yourself procrastinating, force yourself to start taking small steps towards your goal. It doesn’t matter if you don’t get there straight away, just having a focus can help you stop putting things off. 

I understand how you feel and why you procrastinate, as I used to do the same. For years, I delayed writing my first book to inspire and assist others since I didn’t believe I was good enough.

During the past 13 years, while helping hundreds of people, I’ve learned a lot about procrastination. Procrastination can destroy one’s life.

I was a perfectionist, and I dreaded failure until I discovered amazing secrets. The key to unlocking the mind’s potential is to learn how to control your thoughts.

And I decided to feel afraid and do it nevertheless, because I learned that perfection does not exist. I could picture myself holding the book and enjoying the emotion of spreading my message throughout the world!

How I overcame Procrastination

Millennials, you’ve heard the story before.

You want to get things done but you can’t seem to stop procrastinating on starting your work.

I know it’s frustrating and I’m not here to judge or blame. 

This is my story of how I overcame this bad habit that was preventing me from finishing my book trailer for Your Future Starts Today book. 

-Firstly, I thought it’s more difficult than it was and chose to waste time on checking FaceBook.

-Secondly, I did not believe I could do it. And I assumed I wasn’t good at design;

So instead of trying something new, I played it safe by doing something else less urgent, such as checking my Instagram. 

-Thirdly, I preferred to ease my work by doing something else less urgent, such as checking my Instagram.

I want you to know that procrastination is a bad habit. Don’t feel guilty for having it. It’s not your fault by the way. To overcome it, you must start working on your fears and taking action instead of wasting time.

I even created a funny motto to encourage myself: “Not sure what I’m doing but doing it well” 

It’s better to have something done and improve along the way, rather than just procrastinate, and do nothing.

Not only that, but when I finished the book, I felt proud of myself for deciding to act to make it happen rather than accepting the victim mentality of not being a web designer!

My Mission: Inspire Hope and Joy

3 Powerful Ways to Overcome Procrastination

Now, I would like to share with you how to overcome procrastination, some tips from my Take Action Now Program, that are proven and considered by my clients to be helpful, so you can use them too:

“I choose to take action” and stop procrastinating: 3 tips that save you time, money and efforts.

Millennials are the generation of digital natives who know how to work more productively with their phones than without them. But they suffer from chronic delay and avoidance known as “procrastination.”  

Overcome Procrastination using 3 Powerful Tips for Success

(1) Focus on doing by writing down what needs to be done and adding deadlines. Then break tasks into steps and start doing what you wrote down. You can break big tasks into smaller ones; this helps to make them easier and more manageable. This is a good approach because it will not only help you procrastinate less, but also be able to complete your tasks successfully even if they’re challenging for you.

(1.1) Divide the task into small parts and prioritise one of the parts as a main task.

(1.2) When you divide the big task into two or more sub-tasks, prioritise one of them as a main task. It doesn’t matter which part is your main task; what matters is that you finish it!

(2) Rephrase your inner talk by replacing negative statements. Replace “I have to” with a positive ones like “I am tackling tasks as soon as they arise”. It helps to keep you focused and adjust where applies to achieve your goal by the deadline.

(2.1) Offer yourself regular rewards for sustained effort or completing major milestones. This can be anything from a simple pat on the back, to enjoying an episode of your favourite show, to taking time out for coffee with friends after you’ve hit your goal by 10 days/nights before the deadline.

(2.2) Visualize what you want to achieve, in specific detail. Envisioning the future self who has completed these tasks successfully can sometimes give you all the motivation you need.

Take a mentor, or someone will take care of it for you. I am always happy to assist you further. Book a free discovery call with me here.

3. Reduce distractions. When working, turn off your social media alerts, put your phone on silent or in a different room, and minimise distractions.

(3.1)Extra hint: I utilise a timer to keep track of the time spent working on one activity. Such as 1-2 hours for one task, then 10 minutes rest for meditation or stretching my legs.

The Last Thing Before You Go,

Conclusively, it’s preferable to start and have something to improve rather than just putting it off and feeling bad about yourself.

Forget about yesterday; it doesn’t exist anymore. Your future starts today, and tomorrow is not guaranteed!

As a result, take action now and train your mind to recognise your inner power! You will feel ready to complete that project, create that product and offer your unique gifts and abilities to the world!

I hope you enjoyed this article and found it helpful. Share the inspiration and love with your family and friends!

Want more information and tips? Check my free guide below on how to stop procrastinating and master your mind by being present in the now.

Yours Sincerely,

Emilia x

Award-Winning Author, Intuitive Mindset Coach and Creator of Take Action Now Program