If you want to break your OLD habits, you must establish
NEW HABITS to take their place.
After you implement these new habits, time will pass, and
THESE HABITS will become more familiar, and more dependable.
Focus on these new habits when you work on your
Personal Plan to Prevent Procrastination.
See if you can come up with some of your own!
Plan Your Tasks
PLAN may be a four letter word, but it is the GOOD kind that
you don't get in trouble saying in public...
Whenever you have a large task, or even a smaller project with a few
components, you should plan how to attack the project.
If you have a plan of action, the voice of procrastination is not as
likely to rear its horrifying head.
Start with a plan that includes the bare bones tasks you have to
accomplish. Keep your plan simple.
Be sure that the projects you plan to accomplish will get you where
you need to go.
Don’t just write something down for the purpose of putting something
on paper.
KEYPOINT: Establish a plan that will help you achieve your goal.
KEYPOINT: Don’t *overplan* or you will be inclined to procrastinate
because the plan will seem so detailed and overwhelming.
Before time gets away from you, do at least one of the things on the
top of your list so that you feel more productive and accomplished.
Keep your tasks short (no more than 10-60 minutes in length).
If they are longer tasks, break THOSE up into smaller tasks so that
everything is bite-sized.
Be sure that each task has an associated time or date, as appropriate,
by which you want to complete the project (a date for those things that
will take more than one day to complete).
Be sure you include SHORT break time and time for other types of tasks so
that you don’t get bored or tired.
At the end of the day, take 10 minutes to cross off the things you completed.
Also take the time to jot down the things you want to get done the next day,
or to change the plan you have already made for tomorrow, if that is appropriate.
Keypoint: Good enough is good enough. Perfectionism is a four letter
word in disguise!
The best business and time managers know that you shouldn’t OVERDO!
Do what is necessary to complete a task well and on time.
But, don’t overdo it.
Think about it.
You wouldn’t call in Michelangelo to paint the walls of a four
bedroom apartment!
When you are given a task, step back and look at the importance of the project
and decide whether you really have to worry about this task being perfect,
or whether you should just do the best you can.
In fact, as I’ve said before, there is no such thing as perfection. (Even
Angelina Jolie has flaws in her appearance...I'm sure...)
But, if you always strive for perfection and you accept nothing less,
there is a tendency for the procrastinator to just stop in his tracks.
He knows that he can’t achieve the results he wants, so he does nothing
until the last minute and then, when he finally starts and finishes the
project (IF he does) he is even MORE dissatisfied with the results.
