Turning Procrastination into Action
What is Procrastination?
Procrastination might be defined as:
"The art of putting off until tomorrow what you can do today."
We have all been there at some point in our lives or another. When you:
- Find excuses not to do something that is important but difficult
- Avoid confrontation and argument
- Slip into comfortable routines rather than try something new
You may then decide something is telling you it's time to try a concrete technique for action :
Action Checklist
One life coaching technique you can use if you want to avoid procrastination, is to use an action checklist to help you start to move forward, to help you actually do the thing you are putting off - or to help you adjust what you are aiming to do into something which is more achievable. Try going through
the following questions:
1. On a score of
1-10, how likely is it that you will
achieve the action within the time frame you are proposing?
2. If
you have given a score of less than 8, what can you
do that would increase the likelihood of implementing the action
successfully
to 8 or more? e.g.
Consider:
- Modifying or amending the action so that it is more enjoyable to achieve,
- Increasing your chances of completing the action by recording what you aim to achieve in a systematic way, such as making a written note of it which you keep at hand to refer to at the appropriate time or putting an entry in a diary you use or a ‘To Do’ list,
- If helpful, consider whether the timescale you have set to achieve the action in full can be adjusted or broken into small steps to make it more achievable - but don't use this as an excuse to do nothing. Make sure that you intend to do a definite action by a specific time even if the action is not as large as you originally intended.
3. What can you say to yourself to help motivate you to carry out the task? Make sure you remind yourself of it when the time comes to perform the action.
4. Will telling a friend or family member or someone
else what you are
going to do or asking their support help or hinder the likelihood of success?
If it will help the likelihood of success, then who will you tell and what support will you ask for? If it will hinder the likelihood of success then what are you going to do to deal with or prevent that?
5. Have you only got a general idea of what you plan or to do or in your own mind are you now clear of what you want to do as a first step, when you will do it and how you will give yourself the best chance of achieving it? Usually it is best to try to give yourself a specific achievable goal within a specific timescale. How will you monitor your progress in achieving the action so that you can assess how you are doing? - If it is a series of steps you might for example keep a written record or chart ticking off completion of the steps or recording progress.
6. How can you reward yourself in a reasonable way if you achieve the action, to acknowledge your progress? This doesn't mean you should spend lots of money or imbibe harmful substances! It does mean that if you achieve the step you are aiming for then you will deserve a bit of relaxation and will be able to congratulate yourself for having done something that you have been putting off.
- If you try the above steps and you still find you are putting things off, maybe it's time to take that decision to get a coach to help keep you accountable and on track!
For further life coaching techniques, tools and exercises go to:
Life Coaching Techniques and Tools
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Information about Coaching
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