Managing the time you have in your life is important, but there is one thing that will make all your plans less effective: Procrastination. This behavior has been linked to depression and it's also been deemed a learned response, which means that individuals teach themselves (or are shown by others) to procrastinate. Whatever the reason people procrastinate, one thing is for sure: The less you procrastinate, the better you're managing your time.
There are four themes connected to procrastination. There is the Self-Doubting Procrastinator, who fears he will fail at his task so he second-guesses himself out of taking action. There is the Discomfort Dodger, who avoids activities that cause anxiety or discomfort. There is the Guilt-Driven Person, who feels guilty about putting off important tasks but continues to procrastinate to avoid the pressing guilt. Finally, there is the Habitual Procrastinator, one who has procrastinated so many times that the action has become routine, just a part of the person.
Acknowledging you procrastinate and wanting to change the behavior is great, but it can be difficult to know what you should do to break the habit. After all, our society rewards procrastination. Extensions to deadlines are common and often given, people who arrive late at appointments with apologies are excused, and companies give pats on the back for last minute bursts of effort, not for slow, steady progress. With all that rewarding of procrastination and society's hands-down acceptance of the habit, it's tough to know how to break away from putting things off until the last minute.
The first step toward breaking the procrastination spell is to make a to-do-list. The list doesn't have to be in order, but it needs to be somewhere visible so that it can serve as a constant reminder of what needs to be done. After you have made a list, it would be great if you could prioritize that list. You could rank your tasks by deadline or what is considered to be most important. You can also invest in a large calendar that can be a constant source for dates and writing notes. You need to put the calendar in a place that is common, so that it can be seen often and not hidden by a closed door and forgotten. If you have a punctuality problem when it comes to time and deadlines, you can up your deadlines by two days and set your clocks ahead by ten minutes. When you mentally think that the new time and deadline are the right ones, you will find yourself relieved that you not only made your deadline, but you did it early and now you have free time.
Unreliable, unpredictable, unstable: those are three words associated with procrastinators, unpleasant labels that no one really wants to be the owner of. Procrastinating can jeopardize many areas of your life, such as jobs or relationships, and it's a very good idea to try and break yourself of the habit. What's more, you may find that your newfound efficiency actually means you have more free time to spend doing the things you enjoy, instead of feeling guilty about the things you've been putting off.
Find
quick inspirations at http://inspirationbydawggone.com/
