Written by: Anna Dafna, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Everyone procrastinates because we all have things we simply don’t want to do. To successfully manage your procrastination, you need to understand the reasons behind it. If you have ever struggled with putting things off like myself, then this article is for you.
Why do you procrastinate?
You may have a diagnosis or a suspicion of ADHD, ASD, dyslexia and accompanying executive function challenges.
You may procrastinate on boring and trivial tasks or activities that are not fascinating to you or you perceive as tedious.
You may experience burnout, lack of energy or motivation or suffer from anxiety or depression.
You may suffer from low self-esteem, self-distrust or self-sabotaging behaviours.
You may suffer from perfectionism.
You may overthink or feel overwhelmed by the amount of work you need to do or from information overload.
You may not be clear or understand what is expected of you.
You may find projects too difficult or not know how to chunk a big project down into smaller chunks.
You may not know how to plan and prioritise or suffer from indecisiveness.
You may be easily distracted by more pleasurable activities or sensation-seeking behaviour.
You may lack inhibitory control or response inhibition or have an addiction.
You may have failed in the past, so you don’t feel good enough or lack self-confidence in this area.
You may not have systems in place so you don’t know where to start.
You may have limiting beliefs or a fixed mindset about what you can or cannot do.
You may suffer from rejection sensitivity dysphoria (RSD) and are afraid of corrective feedback.
You may not like authority and engage in task avoidance as an act of rebellion against outside control.
Hacks to overcome procrastination and start initiating your life
Below are some of the hacks that can help with procrastination:
1. Ask yourself:
Why is it important for me to achieve this goal?
What are the positive consequences of achieving my goal?
What are the negative consequences of not achieving my goal?
Tapping into your inspirations and aspirations for the future and finding your 'why' when working on a goal is the foundation of this work. You may also wish to visualize how you will feel when you complete your goal and what this will mean to you and important others in your life.
2. Overcome the addiction and illusion of perfection. Perfection doesn’t exist. As we live in an ever-changing and evolving world, what worked yesterday, is old and outdated today. If you are committed to constantly improving yourself compared to who you were yesterday, you win.
3. If you lack motivation, start with the easiest task on your to-do list. This will give you a sense of achievement and an immediate boost of confidence.
4. If you are motivated but may find yourself lacking the systems to get you started with tasks, start with the highest priority and the most challenging task for the day. You know, the one that can take you closer to your goals but also the task you are likely to procrastinate on.
5. Reverse engineer big projects and create bite-size chunks or microtasks. This will help with your planning and prioritising but also with executing the chunks as it will reduce overwhelm.
6. Most individuals give themselves excessive quantities of work to do in a short period of time. It is important to set yourself up for success by setting realistic expectations.
7. Have someone, like a parent, friend, colleague, coach, psychologist or therapist to hold you accountable. It’s unlikely to put things off and ignore them when someone is checking in with you to make sure you are staying on task and focusing on your priorities.
8. Set specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound goals. Set a deadline.
9. Regularly monitor your progress and tweak existing strategies that may not work. This will help you build confidence and reinforce your progress as you near your goal. It also helps with your motivation when things get tough.
10. Design an inspiring and distraction-free environment. Your atmosphere will facilitate or hinder your productivity. Your email or phone calls that keep pinging, social media notifications, TV, bubbly friends, partners and family, your beloved cat or talkative parrot, the construction site across the street, will disrupt your focus and often give you more reasons to procrastinate. This will lead you off track.
11. Work when and where you work best and have breaks according to your attention span, energy levels and motivation. Maybe use the Pomodoro technique or your bespoke version of it: Work in short bursts of 20-30 minutes and rest or have a movement break for 5 or 10 minutes. Repeat 3 or 4 times until your task or project is completed. In the end, reward yourself with a longer break or treat for 20 or 30 minutes.
12. Establish daily and weekly motivators or rewards to keep you going, especially when you are in the process of getting rid of old bad habits. Each type of reward has a different function but both are needed. The reward centre of the brain responds well to rewards. How will you treat yourself after you finish the task?
These are just some of the hacks that can help with starting getting things done. For a more bespoke plan on how to get started with things, you can book a complimentary call, where I can learn more about you and explain how I can help you.
The link is below:
To your success!
Anna Dafna
ADHD and Executive Function Coach, Educational Consultant, Psychologist
Anna Dafna, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Anna Dafna is a psychologist (MEd, MBPsS) affiliated with the British Psychological Society (BPS), accredited ADHD and executive function coach and qualified teacher (QTS). She is helping international neuro-distinct clients maximize happiness, confidence, and performance using a holistic and bespoke approach, her nearly two decades of specialist experience and expertise as well as the latest neuroscience and evidence-based tools. She has a global business that provides world-class, online coaching for children, adolescents, and adults with ADHD, ASD, dyslexia, executive function challenges and other needs. Her mission: To celebrate our uniqueness focusing on our superpowers and asking the right questions to empower and inspire from the inside and not the outside.
