Get 'Er Done - How to Stop Procrastinating

Even if you are one of the most organized, goal oriented people on the planet, chances are that there are certain things that you procrastinate about. We all do it. From cleaning the kitchen floor to organizing the bills to that massive report due to our supervisor on Friday, we all have task that we procrastinate doing and put off until the last possible moment. We might find ourselves asking, as we work slavishly in that final hour before it is due, why we have once again found ourselves in the spot again. Simple human nature has us putting off task we find distasteful or tedious. We must learn to over come this tendency and just get those disdainful task done and check them off our to do list. So here are my tips on how to stop procrastinating.

#1 Lists - I have come to believe that list, not diamonds, are a girls best friends. If we prioritize what we need to get done daily we are a step ahead of the game. Put down those tasks that we are procrastinating. Seeing them in black and white makes them more visible, and less likely that we will avoid them. We can then also take the pleasure of marking them off our list when they are completed. It is a great joy to mark things off your to do list.

#2 Do the things you hate to do first - This falls under the belief that we have to eat our vegetables before we get desert. If we accomplish what we have been putting off because we don't like the job or it stresses us out, imagine if we get it done first thing Monday morning, instead of last thing Friday afternoon. The rest of our week will be smooth sailing. Get that procrastinated job out of your way first and then enjoy the things we like to do, without it hanging over our heads.

#3 Set up long term goals - We all should have these. Set up the goals for your life and the entire task that you need to accomplish these. Even if these are goals in your jobs or at home, set them up. See how that procrastinated task fits into the bigger picture. This will help motivate to get the job done. Often when we see it in the bigger picture it isn't a task we want to procrastinate about any longer.

#4 Break down the procrastinate task into smaller task - Often we find that we procrastinate because the project itself is overwhelming. We feel we will never accomplish it. We can see it a lot clearer if we look at it in smaller bits and pieces. Pieces that we can easily accomplish in small amounts of time will give us a sense of accomplishment.

#5 Build momentum - This may sound easy but just start the task. Once we start the dreaded procrastinated task we build the momentum. It is like saying to our selves, I have started now it won't be so hard to finish. Often times the hardest thing about a procrastinated task is the actual starting of it.

#6 Reward Yourself - Have a task that you have just been putting off forever? Sometimes a reward can be a powerful motivator. Promise yourself when you get that report done for your boss, on time and done well, that you will treat yourself to that dinner at the restaurant you have wanted to try, or that new sweater at the mall you have been looking at.

Remember that we are all procrastinators. We all have those task and jobs that we can't stand. Other people may just handle those tasks and that procrastination better than some. We can learn to be that way. It takes thirty days to form a habit. Make it a habit to stop procrastination. You will find a life time of rewards in Getting 'Er Done!