What can you do if you've tried all the usual tips to stop procrastinating and still had no success? If YOU'VE HAD ENOUGH of starting new projects, usually with buckets of enthusiasm, thinking this time things will be different; only to find yourself right back in that place of inaction, feeling defeated and totally frustrated yet again, then it's likely you've been misinformed about how to deal with this problem. Fortunately the three steps I'm about to share with you will have you turning this around in no time at all. Follow and commit to these steps and not only will you learn how to stop procrastinating forever, but you will find it possible to achieve all those important outcomes in your life which till now you have been struggling to make happen.
Decide that are ready to end procrastination now The first and most important step to liberating yourself from this paralyzing condition may sound a bit obvious but it's a step you can't afford to miss out. You really do have to want to put an end to it right now.If you are only thinking it might be a good idea to STOP PROCRASTINATING some time in the future, then you may as well stop reading the rest of this article now. In short, the pain of not taking action must be greater than the pain of taking action. You need to be so dissatisfied with not getting ahead because of this that you are ready to do whatever it takes to change your situation right now.
Why Do People Procrastinate? Many psychologists believe that people often procrastinate because they have anxiety about starting or completing a project. Other psychological causes include low self esteem and a self defeating mentality. Mental health conditions such as ADHD or depression can also cause a person to procrastinate.
To be successful you have to deal with the underlying way in which procrastination works. You procrastinate because of the way you are wired biologically. Everything you do in life is driven by your desire to gain pleasure and avoid pain. You will also do more to avoid pain than to gain pleasure. So if you link any pain with taking action, even in order to gain pleasure, your association with the pain will stop you from taking action and you will procrastinate.To stop procrastinating there's no point in focusing on the pleasure you will get from achieving your goal instead of the pain to get there because you already know your drive to avoid pain will always win. Rather you must compare the pain you link with taking action to the pain you will feel if you don't take action.
I was working with a friend recently who wanted to lose weight. She had identified that she needed to do exercise to help her achieve this. Unfortunately she always found a way to get out of the exercise and wanted desperately to stop procrastinating. I asked her to tell me what losing weight would do for her. She said she would feel more comfortable in her clothes; that shopping for clothes would be more pleasurable, she would feel more attractive and she would feel happy that she was doing something to improve her health.
Then I asked her to tell me what came to mind when she had to exercise. She told me it was hard, she hated being out of breath, was sure people were laughing at her and she didn't want to have painful muscles the next day. No wonder she couldn't stop procrastinating! Like all of us, she is wired to avoid pain first, so even though she wanted to lose weight to experience all the pleasurable benefits she had given me, skipping the exercise because of the pain she linked with it was the greater motivator. I asked her to tell me what would happen if she didn't exercise. "I'll stay fat." she said. "What will that mean?" I asked. She said she would continue to feel unattractive, her clothes would cut into her skin because they were too tight, people would snicker behind her back whenever she was out to eat and she would possibly get diabetes. I wanted her to stop procrastinating so I asked whether she would rather experience the pain linked to the exercise or the pain linked to staying fat. There was no hesitation. The pain linked to staying fat would be far worse and more permanent.
She agreed that whenever she felt tempted to skip exercise from then on she would immediately interrupt that pattern and focus her thoughts on how it would feel to stay fat versus how she would feel doing exercise. I knew if she could do this that it would cancel out the debilitating pain she linked with exercise and she would STOP PROCRASTINATING. Last I heard she was still exercising every day. If you follow the above process you too will be able to determine the right action to take to interrupt your own procrastination habit. Review your results and act.Once you have spent some time approaching your situation differently you must notice whether you are getting different results. Are you procrastinating less, maybe completely? If so you will have found a way that works to help you too and you will know what to continue doing. But what should you do if you have followed these three steps and you have still not found a way to stop procrastinating?
Firstly don't give up and you won't if it's important enough to you. Analyze where your problem may lie. Are you sure you have committed to the actions above? Do you perhaps need more information than an article this length can provide?If you're sure you have done everything possible then just accept that you need to try something else and if that doesn't work, try something else and keep going till you find a way. We are all different and what works for one person may not work for another. Don't give up. Often the simplest of actions is difficult for us to implement which is why using a tool to assist us to interrupt our negative pattern can be useful.
Learn More About [How To Stop Procrastination]
Decide that are ready to end procrastination now The first and most important step to liberating yourself from this paralyzing condition may sound a bit obvious but it's a step you can't afford to miss out. You really do have to want to put an end to it right now.If you are only thinking it might be a good idea to STOP PROCRASTINATING some time in the future, then you may as well stop reading the rest of this article now. In short, the pain of not taking action must be greater than the pain of taking action. You need to be so dissatisfied with not getting ahead because of this that you are ready to do whatever it takes to change your situation right now.
Why Do People Procrastinate? Many psychologists believe that people often procrastinate because they have anxiety about starting or completing a project. Other psychological causes include low self esteem and a self defeating mentality. Mental health conditions such as ADHD or depression can also cause a person to procrastinate.
To be successful you have to deal with the underlying way in which procrastination works. You procrastinate because of the way you are wired biologically. Everything you do in life is driven by your desire to gain pleasure and avoid pain. You will also do more to avoid pain than to gain pleasure. So if you link any pain with taking action, even in order to gain pleasure, your association with the pain will stop you from taking action and you will procrastinate.To stop procrastinating there's no point in focusing on the pleasure you will get from achieving your goal instead of the pain to get there because you already know your drive to avoid pain will always win. Rather you must compare the pain you link with taking action to the pain you will feel if you don't take action.
I was working with a friend recently who wanted to lose weight. She had identified that she needed to do exercise to help her achieve this. Unfortunately she always found a way to get out of the exercise and wanted desperately to stop procrastinating. I asked her to tell me what losing weight would do for her. She said she would feel more comfortable in her clothes; that shopping for clothes would be more pleasurable, she would feel more attractive and she would feel happy that she was doing something to improve her health.
Then I asked her to tell me what came to mind when she had to exercise. She told me it was hard, she hated being out of breath, was sure people were laughing at her and she didn't want to have painful muscles the next day. No wonder she couldn't stop procrastinating! Like all of us, she is wired to avoid pain first, so even though she wanted to lose weight to experience all the pleasurable benefits she had given me, skipping the exercise because of the pain she linked with it was the greater motivator. I asked her to tell me what would happen if she didn't exercise. "I'll stay fat." she said. "What will that mean?" I asked. She said she would continue to feel unattractive, her clothes would cut into her skin because they were too tight, people would snicker behind her back whenever she was out to eat and she would possibly get diabetes. I wanted her to stop procrastinating so I asked whether she would rather experience the pain linked to the exercise or the pain linked to staying fat. There was no hesitation. The pain linked to staying fat would be far worse and more permanent.
She agreed that whenever she felt tempted to skip exercise from then on she would immediately interrupt that pattern and focus her thoughts on how it would feel to stay fat versus how she would feel doing exercise. I knew if she could do this that it would cancel out the debilitating pain she linked with exercise and she would STOP PROCRASTINATING. Last I heard she was still exercising every day. If you follow the above process you too will be able to determine the right action to take to interrupt your own procrastination habit. Review your results and act.Once you have spent some time approaching your situation differently you must notice whether you are getting different results. Are you procrastinating less, maybe completely? If so you will have found a way that works to help you too and you will know what to continue doing. But what should you do if you have followed these three steps and you have still not found a way to stop procrastinating?
Firstly don't give up and you won't if it's important enough to you. Analyze where your problem may lie. Are you sure you have committed to the actions above? Do you perhaps need more information than an article this length can provide?If you're sure you have done everything possible then just accept that you need to try something else and if that doesn't work, try something else and keep going till you find a way. We are all different and what works for one person may not work for another. Don't give up. Often the simplest of actions is difficult for us to implement which is why using a tool to assist us to interrupt our negative pattern can be useful.
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