Stop Waiting … Start Doing

You said you want to do it, yet you haven't started doing it ... Why?!? 

Why haven't you started? 

Why aren't you doing it? 

Why did you start but not finish? 

What is keeping you from where you want to be? 

The answer is you. 

You are the only thing that is keeping you from getting to where you want to go. 

You set a timeline, you set a deadline, but you never stick to it. 

Why not? 

It's time to stop… It's time to stop procrastinating. 

That’s what it all comes down to … Procrastination!

What is procrastination?!?

What does it affect?!?

What type of procrastinator are you? 

How can you stop procrastinating? 

You are in control. 

You have to want it. You have to go after it. 

You have to find a reason, something that is keeping you moving toward where you need and want to be, and get it done.

Stop waiting … start reading … start doing! It's time to dive into procrastination!

What is Procrastination?

Procrastination is you putting off doing something. 

It could be anything from setting a goal to achieving a goal, from starting to workout to starting to eat healthy. It can be putting off doing anything.

Procrastination isn't limited to one area of your life!

Procrastination is something that we all do at some point in our life, in our week, and in our day. 

But, knowing what procrastination is just the tip of the iceberg. 

Now that we know what procrastination is, let’s look at what it affects, see what type of procrastinator you are, in order to figure out why you procrastinate, and then to know how we can work to overcome it. 

What does Procrastination Affect? 

In one word … EVERYTHING!

Procrastination can keep you from setting goals, achieving goals, starting projects, completing projects, being on time … Anything and everything can be affected by procrastination because you’re putting off doing something, whatever that something is.

Procrastination is keeping you from being great! Whether that be ...

• Advancement at work because you can't meet deadlines and they don’t think you can't be trusted with important things.

• Starting your business because you keep pushing it off when you’re going to do and launch it.

• Getting your house organized and cleaned.

Procrastination doesn’t have to be preventing you from doing something that is in and of itself life changing … But procrastinating will change your life!

The thing with procrastination is that it has a ripple effect … While you think that procrastination is only stopping you from whatever the thing is you're putting off doing, by not doing that thing you are creating a ripple effect that is affecting other areas of your life. 

What Type of Procrastinator are You?

Let's be real, we all procrastinate at some point in our lives, in our weeks, in our days. 

But, there are different levels of procrastination and different types of procrastinators … 

In reading about each type of procrastinator, see which one feels or sounds like you. By acknowledging which procrastinator you are, you will then see why you procrastinate, and can then work on knowing how to address and overcome procrastination.

"I work well under pressure"

You like to wait until the last minute and minimize the amount of time that you have to get a task done. 

But, if you limit the amount of time that you have to get something done, it means that it won’t be done perfectly. Yes, there are times when done is better than perfect … But, that’s more when you’ve been working on something forever and you just want to keep working on it and never putting it out there.

You WILL make mistakes, we’re humans. The question really is, by putting yourself under this extra pressure, do you want to increase the number, type, and frequency of mistakes that you’re about to make?!?

Think of the implications of the potential mistake … Will it affect your job, your business, your grade, your family, your health, your finances … 

Are you willing to take that risk?!?

Having the habit of putting yourself under pressure is not sustainable.

Getting started is your biggest struggle. 

Since you like to put off getting the task done, set a start date!

This will take a lot of the pressure of getting the thing done, but will shift your focus to knowing when you’re going to start it. 

"It’s not done yet … It’s just not perfect"

How long have you been working on this thing?!? 

The struggle here is not wanting to put something out there because it isn’t just right.

But, will it ever be perfect?!? What is the missing piece to perfect it?!? 

Yes, you should take pride in your work.

Yes, you should put good work out.

But, what you shouldn’t do is continue to delay putting the work out there because you don’t think it’s perfect.

Be real with yourself … Will it EVER be perfect?!? 

No really … Think about it ...  

You thought that there was something missing … you added that thing.

& then what … something else was missing, right?!?

Exactly … STOP - Have standards in your work, but the standard shouldn’t be perfection.

Perfection isn’t really attainable! 

"I’m so lazy and don’t feel like it right now"

We’re not going to always want to do something. We’re not going to always be motivated to get something done. 

Yes, there are times when you need a break.

Yes, there are times when mentally you just aren’t in the headspace to do something.

But, if you’re just being lazy … Because you don’t “feel” like it … that’s not going to work!

Knowing when you’re being lazy and knowing when you're actually tired is the biggest struggle. 

Balance being lazy against needing a break. See if you really are tired - if you are, take a break! 

But, how can you determine if you’re being lazy or you really are tired and need a break?

Check in with yourself! You know yourself!

Take a quick walk. Take a quick break. Relax and recharge your energy. 

But we have to make sure when we don't feel like doing something that the thing we're procrastinating isn't a must do. 

There are plenty of things that we put on our to-do list that we want to do and we should do or that would be nice to do but aren't necessarily things that must be done. 

If you’re going to be lazy on something … Make sure that it isn’t something that is time sensitive and has an important deadline. 

"I'm so busy"

You’ve filled up your calendar and to do list so much that it’s just overwhelming at this point.

But, are you really that busy … Or are you just creating chaos so that you don’t have to face the things on the list, do the things that need to be done.

Are you really busy … Or are you just talking about being so busy that you don’t ever start any of the things that are on the list?!?

A lot of times we’re saying that we’re busy … But we created the mess!

The problem here is that you didn’t set or honor your boundaries!

You are in charge of your calendar, your schedule, the things that you say yes to.

STOP SAYING YES TO EVERYTHING! STOP OVERWHELMING YOUR TO DO LIST!

You have to plan and prioritize better so avoid the overwhelm.

You're in charge of your schedule. So, if you're so busy it's because you allow yourself to become so busy. 

You didn't prioritize your time, you didn’t properly allocate your time, you didn't realize where your time was being spent, you allowed someone else to control your schedule by allowing yourself to become so overbooked saying yes to so many things. 

Now look at you … You’re just “so busy”. 

Set boundaries. Establish boundaries. Honor your boundaries.

By doing so, you’re less likely to be “so busy”, because you're only allowing things onto your plate that are important, time sensitive, that you want to do, and that must be done.

"I just had the best idea!"

Have you heard of shiny object syndrome or having a squirrel brain?

You can’t seem to focus on just one task … You get easily bored or distracted with another idea, project, or task.

You’re constantly coming up with new things that you want to take on.

What are you actually finishing?!? The answer … Probably nothing!

The struggle here is actually completing a task!

You have no problem with starting … But the follow through needed to finish it, that’s where the issue comes in.

You lose so much time by starting and stopping projects!

Instead, have an ideas board - Somewhere where you can write down all the great ideas you come up with! 

You don’t want to lose the great ideas that you have … Just write down the idea. You don’t have to start a new project just because you have the idea. Write it down, and when the current project or task is completed, then you can move on to the next one … 

You have to focus on what's in front of you at that time. PERIOD. 

Give yourself a specific amount of time to allocate to the task you’re working on now before you allow yourself to become distracted by some other task.

But, There’s More … 

Procrastination is a habit. It’s a deeply ingrained pattern of behavior. 

You can’t break it overnight.

You won’t break it overnight.

Even when you think that you’ve conquered it, it will try to rear its ugly head and come back.

There’s more to be said on procrastination …

More tips and tricks for how to overcome it … But, we will cover that next week.

I don’t want to overwhelm you.

I want you to take this time to acknowledge and identify which type of procrastinator resonates most with you, and comment it below.

Use this week to see when you are exhibiting the symptoms of procrastination … Write them down.

We’ll use them next week as we go further into procrastination. 

But, if you’ve read this … and you’re ready to take the next step now, and not wait for next week, book a call. Let’s talk about how we can work together to overcome this procrastination … how we can change your perspective on procrastination, how we can change your mindset on procrastination, and how we can change your life to let go of procrastination. 

Let’s get to work on working through the steps in your life. I’m here … always! 

-Alesha

The “Lee” behind Legal.Lee