This blog tells what is the cause of procrastination and also lists 5 easy ways to stop it.

Procrastination is when you put off a task for another time when you don’t “feel” like doing it.

It is pretty normal unless it becomes a habit wherein none of your deadlines are met and your life is a chaos coz you put everything on hold for no good reason.

Procrastination as a habit is common nowadays with students putting off studying, employees putting off deadlines, homemakers putting off house chores – it’s too common an issue.

Below I’ve listed 5 reasons why you might be procrastinating and also the 5 solutions to stop this unhealthy habit that is eating up your productivity and potential.

#1 “THERE’S STILL TIME” ATTITUDE

You’re presented with an assignment to be submitted on Thursday, You think it’s just Monday, I’ll complete it tomorrow with my best efforts.

Then again tomorrow you feel why to give it this much time – I’ll start tomorrow and produce an above average assignment – it’ll be fine.

Then again the next day you feel that this series you’re watching is way too interesting and you still have till tonight – who cares you’ll submit an okayish work for the last time – in the next assignment you’ll put your best efforts.

Now it’s Thursday, somehow you crammed the assignment from here and there and produced a result that is so not at par with your true potential.

This is the “I STILL HAVE TIME” ATTITUDE.

And it’s harming your true potential and abilities, you subconsciously slip into these lazy patterns.

So now how to come out of it?

One solution that will help you is dividing the deadline in smaller deadlines.

Taking the above example –

Monday you get an assignment to be submitted on Thursday.

Don’t see it as something to be produced by Thursday.

Take your planner, Make small deadlines like – On Monday I have to produce the Introduction, On Tuesday I have to produce the Hypothesis and On Wednesday I have to create the conclusion.

And by Thursday the task is done and because you divided it – you put more effort in singular parts of it and created something that is more at par with your true potential.

#2 TOO MANY THINGS – CAN’T HANDLE! 

Too many tasks at hand puts our minds in a loop of “I can’t do this” – “I can’t get this done” – “This is impossible and out of my control”.

Constantly thinking these thoughts produces a feeling of “flight” because the “fight” feels impossible to win.

The solution for this can be learnt from a computer, Hear me out.

When you trigger too many commands in a computer at any given moment that it has to respond to in that instant, the computer doesn’t burst, maybe it hangs but that’s because it’s dealing with the gazillion demands and pressure you’re putting on it.

How does a computer deal with it?

Very simply by starting off with one task at a time – any task – without overthinking too much and using every second it gets.

Thinking only about the task at hand and completing that one task at that time only – is the only way to deal with chaos.

Not letting your mind flutter in how everything could go wrong and just focussing on one task at hand at a time is the only way to not go in the “flight” mode.

Because that’s only how you’ll be able to believe that you have things in control.

#3 DISTRACTIONS

Yes I know this one should have been at the top of the list as it is absolutely the one main reason for procrastination.

DISTRACTIONS can come in various forms and I don’t have to name them – you know what distracts you from your work.

What I do have to point out though is that there are two kinds of distractions –

1. the ones you impose on yourself, that you control – for example, Spending time on social media.

2. the ones that are imposed on you forcefully by third parties – for example, A mother continuously assigning you house chores when you’re trying to study.

For the first case scenario, you can use the method of delayed gratification.

In this, You work for 25mins. and then ease up in the distraction for a controlled amount of time – say 10mins.

So for working every 25mins. you get 10mins. of instant gratification.

You can increase or decrease the time according to your convenience.

For the second case scenario, learn to say no to external stimuli causing distractions.

SAY NO to your friends who want to meet up or be on call every other day for hours and hours.

SAY NO to your mother assigning you her tasks while you’re busy with your own.

NO, Don’t make any lame excuse – BE CLEAR. If they care for you they’ll know you have tasks to accomplish and goals to achieve and they’ll stop being a distraction.

#4 HAVING A FEAR OF FAILURE

Such fears can work at a subconscious level too, meaning, that you maybe confused why consciously you don’t feel motivated to study and that maybe because the fear of failure is holding you back at a subconscious level.

Clearing the subconscious and reprocessing your mind to think and feel in a more productive way – is the only solution for it.

You can read this blog on what are affirmations and how they work – They will help you reprogram your mind to eradicate all fears that hold you back.

#5 WAITING FOR PERFECTION

Too many of us delay beginning a new venture or task for when the “timing is right” or “weather is more supportive” or “when we move in the new house” or “When I get that job” –

We wait around for the perfect conditions of certain external and internal stimuli but there needs to be a realization that such perfect conditions might never come around because not everything in life is under our control.

So whatever it is that you want to do, do it now. Don’t postpone it for a better time because maybe the time that you’re living in right now provides the most favourable conditions that you might get for some time.

If you want better conditions – you’ve got to create them, instead of sitting around waiting for them to be perfect on their own. That doesn’t happen. You’re the creator. Create.

Realize this on your own time and start whatever it is you want to start – TODAY.