A British study reveals that an average worker wastes 43 minutes a day postponing tasks which costs business £76 billion a year! A tenth of the country’s national debt!

Procrastination can cost you emotionally, physically and financially (aside from the fact that it’s costing your employer too). Simply because the act of postponing a task is not only a simple act of laziness or of having false control of the situation – it snowballs into several ill effects that you might regret.

War On Slacking

We hear all kinds of procrastination stories!

One member put off a day’s medication and ended up spending a fortune on emergency healthcare.

Another put off making a work presentation and missed it altogether.

And there are quite a few who have put off paying card bills until surcharges amount to more than the latest purchase.

Yikes!

If you are guilty of this, you are not alone. We all procrastinate, however we are not all chronic procrastinators.

Statistics show that 20% of the population is afflicted by this disorder, and by disorder we mean the mindset of chronic procrastinators. I’m sure no-one is surprised that social media seems to be the main reason of procrastination!

How many of you reading this now have put off washing the dishes or doing the laundry to peek at your phone? We all love a disruption from the mundane things we have to do daily, it’s just trying to find that balance between staying productive & putting things off (indefinitely) that gets us in a spin.  That’s where we can help!

Tips To Beat Procrastination

Acknowledge You Procrastinate

The very first step to stop the vice of procrastination is to acknowledge it first and recognize that your procrastinating habit is an unhealthy one.

We think that our postponement of simple and doable things is harmless.

By finally accepting that you are indeed immersed in the habit you are now ultimately taking a huge step in solving it. Remember that procrastination is the opposite of productivity – beating it will increase your output.

Recognise Your Type

According to MSN Australia article, there are three types of procrastinators.

1. The thrill seeker – enjoys the last minute working against deadline thrill.
2. The avoidant – avoids the possibilities of failure and even success.
3. The indecisive – perfectionists who await more time for a possibility of responsibility shift.

Follow These 10 Simple Steps

#1 (10+2)*5

This looks pretty complicated for someone like me who hates math (I know this is simple arithmetic!).

This is a formula by Merlin Mann that illustrates the use of 10 minutes for work + 2 minute break and multiply it by 5 to have an hour. If you follow it you’ll even forget that you have the two minute break!

#2 Tidy Your Desk

Your surroundings create a distraction!

Tidy up your desk area to clear your mind and to prompt you to work.

#3 Schedule Chores And Distractions

Create a schedule of your work and things to do for the day with specific timeframe.

Instead of sneaking in minutes for slacking, schedule this on your break.

#4 Set Times For Tasks

Set the timeframe for your tasks and beat yourself to it.

You will stay focused if you follow the timeline and avoid distractions.

#5 Find The Best Shortcut

Use your ingenuity, find the best shortcut to finish task but without compromising work.

In case you finish your work ahead of time, then use your time to do additional light productive stuff.

#6 Be Gadget Free

Remove gadgets and devices from your desktop until it’s break time. It’s all too easy to pick up your phone and have a “quick” scroll … and before you know it, it’s 20 minutes later!

#7 Divide Big Tasks

If a big task is looming and it is daunting or demotivating, simply divide tasks into mini and doable tasks.

In no time you will realise that you’ve nearly finished it.

#8 Have Someone To Remind You

Let other’s working around you know that you’d appreciate a little prompt if they see you slacking off.

This may be difficult at first, because you might feel like someone is judging you. But if you trust someone enough to give you a nudge in the right direction then enlist their help.

#9 Workout

Working out a few minutes a day keeps your mind alert – while keeping your body active and healthy!

#10 Lower Expectations

You can’t perfect everything. Lower your expectations and simply do the best you can that day.

Here’s how to short circuit perfectionism and procrastination.

Feel free to share your best procrastination tips below!