{"id":1342,"date":"2007-09-20T05:00:20","date_gmt":"2007-09-20T12:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/getrichslowly.org\/blog\/2007\/09\/20\/getting-to-now-how-to-beat-the-procrastination-habit\/"},"modified":"2024-03-05T12:05:42","modified_gmt":"2024-03-05T19:05:42","slug":"getting-to-now-how-to-beat-the-procrastination-habit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/getting-to-now-how-to-beat-the-procrastination-habit\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting to now: How to beat the procrastination habit"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am a procrastinator. I always have been. It’s a character flaw, and I admit it. I’ve tried all sorts of things to beat the habit \u2014 Getting Things Done<\/b><\/i><\/a>, e-mail reminders, dozens of list systems \u2014 but the only thing that seems to work is to:<\/p>\n

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Do it now.<\/i><\/b><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n

This is blindingly obvious, I know, but many people lose sight of this fundamental skill. It’s not that we don’t know<\/i> that we should do things now; it’s that we’ve forgotten how. Here are some techniques I’ve been using to try to force myself to get to now<\/i>:<\/p>\n

\"\"Set aside blocks of time to do<\/em> things<\/h2>\n

When I was talking with my wellness coach<\/a> earlier this year, she asked me why I didn’t exercise more often. “I don’t have the time,” I said. “Something always comes up.” She wasn’t impressed. “J.D.,” she said. “You have to make<\/i> time. Make an appointment with yourself to run or to go for a bike ride.” The same principle applies to other things you might procrastinate. Kris and I used to schedule a block of time on Saturday morning specifically to clean the house. Each week we’d tackle a different room. If we didn’t do this, I’d just put it off for weeks (or months). Pick an hour a day to get things done<\/i>.<\/p>\n

<\/span>If it comes to mind, then do it<\/span><\/h2>\n

Often I’ll be sitting on the back porch reading a book, and it will occur to me that some chore needs to be done \u2014 pruning the laurel hedge, for example. “I need to write that down so I can remember it,” I tell myself. Wrong!<\/i> What usually happens is that I forget to write it down, and even if I do, I just look at the list and procrastinate for weeks on end. The best move is to actually do<\/i> the chore when I think of it. (Assuming, of course, that I have the time at that moment. Which I usually do.)<\/p>\n

<\/span>Use a timer to bring you back to reality<\/span><\/h2>\n

Part of the reason I procrastinate is that I have a rich mental life. This is just a flowery way of saying that I’m a daydreamer. I’m always lost in thought. One way to keep on track is to use a timer. I use the Ultrak Jumbo Countdown Timer<\/a><\/b>, but not as often as I should. I set it for 48 minutes. When it goes off, it serves as an instant reality check: Am I doing what I’m supposed to be doing?<\/p>\n

<\/span>Do not<\/i> multitask<\/span><\/h2>\n

Oh, how I love multitasking. “I’m great at doing many things at once,” I told Kris once. She gave me one of those looks. “No, you’re not,” she said. “You’re great at starting<\/i> many things at once, but you never actually do<\/i> any of them.” Ouch!<\/i><\/b> But she’s right. In order for me to get something done, I need to focus my attention on it. Trying to do several things at once is a sure way to be sure they’ll all be unfinished tomorrow.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Eliminate distractions<\/span><\/h2>\n

Modify your environment to eliminate distractions. Distractions feed procrastination. How many of these have you told yourself:<\/p>\n