The Procrastinator's Lament

As I opened my refrigerator door recently and for the umpteenth time gazed at the UFO's (unidentified food objects) pushed to the back of the shelf, I felt a little nudge to finally dispose of the containers before they grew legs and walked out on their own. But almost immediately came the "procrastinator's lament". You'll recognize the universal refrain, which has several short verses: "I don't feel like it", "I don't have time", "now isn't a good time"; "I'll do it later," or "when I get around to it."

Perhaps these messages sound familiar. But in that moment, I paused long enough to ask myself this question: When I might actually "When might I..."? The answer that came back was "never, so I might as well do it now." And in the next few minutes I did the thing I had almost delayed yet again.

It was in this most mundane of activities that a truth revealed itself. The truth of procrastination is there will never be a time you "feel like" doing some (maybe most) of the things on your list, nor will there be a time when you "have the time" to tackle them either. Yet they still need to be done.

Some examples:

• the report or proposal you've delayed so long you hope the prospect has forgotten about it;
• the phone call you haven't returned and now feel so guilty about that you'll never "feel" like confronting your procrastination, so you push it out of your mind...again
• the check-up you haven't scheduled because now isn't a "good time".

The list goes on.

So what's an expert procrastinator to do? Rely on will power alone to get you through? That hasn't worked out so well. How about creating some strategies to start overcoming procrastination and getting stuff done. Here are some of my favorite techniques for tuning out the procrastinator's lament and tuning in the call to action NOW!

First, get in the habit of asking yourself, "When will I have time to do this?" Or "When will I 'feel' like doing it?" If the answer comes back, "never" you have several choices: 1) Keep procrastinating; 2) Take some small action now and see where it leads; 3) Hire someone else to do it (appealing but not always practical).

If the answer that comes back is "I'll have time Monday at 1" then schedule time with yourself for Monday at 1. Put it on your calendar...in red...as an appointment with yourself.

Second, if it's a big project, the size of it has probably convinced you that it will take five times longer than it actually will. In my experience and that of many, many clients I've worked with over the years, the apparent size of the task seems to loom larger the longer we put it off. The cure? Break the task down into small increments. Work on it for 10 minutes at a time. Then set the timer and actually do something on the project for 10 minutes without doing anything else. At the end of that time you can choose whether to continue or come back for another 10 minutes later. But at least you've started, and that's often the hardest part!

My friend Keith, who I mentioned in last week's MMC didn't set out to lose nearly 200 pounds. He set out to lose 10 pounds, and he was willing to do it one pound at a time. His story is an amazing testament to the power of taking small steps.

Third, enroll an accountability partner. Personal trainers know this. Coaches know it. You and I know it. The moment we become accountable to someone else we are automatically more accountable to ourselves. Countless times over the years when a client has committed to taking action on something they've been putting off, they have followed through because they made a promise to someone else--me.

Fourth, make it a game or give yourself a reward. Promising yourself even a small reward can often be sufficient motive to get moving. I used to procrastinate paying bills every month. This was before the ease of on-line bill-paying. Finally I decided to make it into a ritual that included lighting a candle, putting on some great music and of course a reward of some kind when I was done. Silly? Maybe, but it worked!

Fifth, let go of the myth of perfection. This one has stopped me time and again! Imperfect and done trumps perfect and undone every time. There are very few things (maybe brain or heart surgery or filing a tax return) that require the precision of perfection. Does your report really have to be 20 pages with a table of contents and an index or could you say the same thing and get the same result with a cover page, an executive summary and 2-3 pages of documentation. Trust me on this one, we perfectionist procrastinators make things much harder than they have to be!

So what's the "UFO" in your life this week? What is it that you've said you'll do but haven't done? Have you been singing the procrastinator's lament, "I don't have time" or some variation?

• What small step could you take this week to move you forward?
• How might you change the game to get you started?
• Who might you enlist to support you and hold you accountable?
• Who else besides you might do it faster, better or more effectively?
• Does it really have to be done 100% perfect or does it just need to be done?

I challenge you to do the thing you've been procrastinating. Use me as your accountability partner. Let me know what it is you intend to do, when you intend to do (or at least start it) it, and report in before next week's MMC. Make this the week to tackle it, "no matter what!" And watch how much time and energy you free up in the process.

Here's to a powerful, productive week!


Quote of the Week:

"Procrastination is, hands down, our favorite form of self-sabotage."
~~Alyce P. Cornyn-Selby

Go Ahead...Eat a Frog!!

One of Brian Tracy's classics, "Eat That Frog" is this week's recommendation from the Simple Truths collection. Brian has a way of spelling it out clearly and his advice has been successfully applied by hundreds of thousands of people who have learned to overcome procrastination and get things done!!

Eat That Frog! with FREE DVD - $ 15.95
From: Simple Truths

Compass Coaching Can Change Your Life

Successful people know the power of coaching to help them get more done, overcome self-sabotage and create a life they love. Now anyone who has a sincere desire to improve their life can afford the services of a coach thanks to Compass Coaching. Take a look, then make the commitment to start NOW!

"Be who you are...do what you can do...choose your greatness over your fear!"
Betty Mahalik, Professional Certified Coach Dynamic Solutions Coaching & Training bettym@dynamic-coaching.com www.dynamic-coaching.com www.mylifecompass.com/bmahalik	Dynamic Solutions 5240 Mustang St. Las Vegas, NV 89130 tel: 702 658-4425 fax: 702 658-5802 mobile: 702 443-0175
Want a signature like this?