The Problem
Procrastination is the uber-problem of time management. It encompasses almost every "can't make progress" behavior, and is one of the top issues that clients come to me for help with. Overcoming procrastination is one of the most difficult time management strategies to address. Search on Google for 15 seconds and you'll find every form of advice available, mostly a smorgasbord of common tips and tricks like "Do the worst/pleasant/easy part first," "Give yourself a reward," or "poke holes in it." Unfortunately, while useful, applying separate activities inconsistently isn't adequate to solve procrastination, or it wouldn't still be a problem. No, what makes procrastination so nasty is that it's an umbrella concept with multiple possible causes and deep underpinnings. In other words, a complex of bad habits. These can include:- Fear of failure/success/being wrong,
- poor discipline,
- distractions,
- lack of interest,
- perfectionism,
- and so on.
A New Approach
Instead, my approach to solving procrastination is to treat each problem as an experiment. We try a small number of activities, collect information, analyze the results to see what worked for you, and decide what to try next. Then we iterate until we've learned enough to decide a final plan. Taking small steps and assessing along the way allows us to rapidly hone in on the root problems and solutions. Best yet, instead of making you feel bad, we tap your natural curiosity and intellect: What makes you tick? What gets in the way? Why do you do counter-productive activities? When do they activate? What are your feelings when they kick in? Applying this more scientific approach helps you stop procrastinating and improve productivity so you can get your natural talents and enthusiasm back on line.Feel free to email or give me a call - I'd be delighted to chat and see if I can help.
