Defeating the Procrastination Demon

Imagine this: Your essay’s deadline is tomorrow but you suddenly realize, “Why are my nails so long?” Then you cut them. After that, you find your work desk cluttered and it has to be organized right now because how can you work in this condition?

Thirty minutes passed by, and you finally sat down and grabbed your pen, but then, you feel that you need a snack. Otherwise, how would you have the energy to work? Oh, and don’t forget to check your phone too!

At the end of the day, when you finally compose yourself to do something productive, it dawns on you.

You haven’t written a single word.

That is when you go into panic mode. You either roughly finish your paper or in the worst-case scenario, submit nothing at all.

Are you a lazy person in general? Do you not consider yourself productive at all? Maybe it’s time to start thinking differently. I think you are Procrastinating.

Wait a minute, don’t be afraid of this giant word. It’s not a physical disease or a mental disorder at all. Before you jump the gun, let’s take a look at what the procrastination demon is in reality, why we fall into this trap, and how it can affect your daily life.

What is Procrastination?

Procrastination is when you are purposely putting off or delaying important tasks at hand by shifting your focus toward other less important and more enjoyable tasks despite knowing the results of doing so.

The delay starts from a few minutes, expands to a few hours, and without realizing it reaches up to days. The deadline finally comes and you haven’t even started the work yet.

We often call it ‘laziness’ which is certainly not the case. Being lazy means that we are not doing anything at all and are not willing to do anything in the future as well.

Procrastination is different in the sense that we willingly indulge ourselves in doing less important tasks to put off urgent tasks.

Why Do We Let the Procrastination Demon Take Over?

Most of us procrastinate in our own ways. In my case, I always find myself checking my emails before work and it continues after every 5 minutes. I have fixed a certain time for entertainment but why on earth am I finding this particular TV show interesting right before working on my articles?

If you’re having the same experience of delaying the task at hand, then we are riding the same boat. The question is; why do we do it anyway? There can be several reasons and a few of them are:

• Your energy levels are low
• You are distressed about something
• You are continuously working and not taking a break
• You are expecting too much from yourself
• You have an unhealthy lifestyle
• You need your work to be perfectly done
• You are not motivated enough or consider the task boring or too hard
• You are afraid of the failure

And many more similar reasons.

How Does the Procrastination Demon Affect Our Daily Lives?

Procrastination affects our daily routines in different ways. You are delaying the task as much as possible but there is a constant reminder at the back of your mind that you should be working on something else. This feeling prevents you from relaxing.

What’s more, is that your productivity suffers a lot. You think of yourself as someone who can’t do anything at all. It destroys your self-image and you do not trust yourself with important tasks or new challenges.

Not to mention that the inability to complete tasks on time can cause a consequent decrease in self-confidence.

Ways to Overcome the Procrastination Demon

As I have faced the problem myself, I understand how it can be a source of frustration and unsatisfactory results. I did my research and particularly found these tips helpful in defeating this ‘demon’ once and for all!

Let’s dive right into them;

1. Plan Your Day Before It Starts

The tip that helped me the most in beating procrastination was to make a short list of the essential tasks that I needed to do the next day and I always do that at the end of the day before I go to sleep!

For example, divide the list into two parts;

• The things you have to do no matter what

You can’t delay these tasks no matter what. You have to complete them the next day but make sure that there are not too many of them. These can be laundry, exercise, going for a walk, etc.

• One big task you can’t compromise on

This big task can be a work-related report you have to assemble or a school project you must complete the same day.

      Still, don’t be too hard on yourself and take small steps towards your goals.

2. Divide The Task Into Smaller Milestones

Sometimes you feel like your intended task is like a giant mammoth standing in your way and you just can’t seem to get past it. This leads you to delay it further and further.

To make it more manageable, start with small doable tasks that do not take too long to be finished.

For example, you have to submit this research report by tomorrow which feels like a burden to you. Break down the task itself into smaller milestones like before lunch, you can make an outline for the paper. After that, focus only on the research part. After dinner, you can try and write a summary. Maybe discuss it with a friend to get a fresh set of eyes for your work.

Don’t force yourself to complete the task all at once. Break it down into smaller steps to make it easier for you to approach it.

3. Take A Break

When you overwork yourself, you are bound to feel distressed and exhausted. Even if you are physically healthy, you are mentally drained. Your constant weariness makes it harder for you to start the next intended task and you start to procrastinate.

Not to mention, procrastination affects your mental well-being and your distress towards yourself increases further.

The best way to tackle it is to take a break after you complete the task or you can take small breaks of 5-10 minutes in-between the task.

For example,you can take a 5-minute coffee break to refresh yourself while working on a project or if you are a mother and just managed to help your child take a nap, you can take a 10-minute exercise or meditation break to help you relax.

This simple technique will take your mind off the tedious task at the moment and will energize you once again!

4. Eliminate Your ‘Favorite’ Distractions

As I like to say, ‘Distraction Feeds Procrastination’. Most of us have our favorite distractions that help us to procrastinate including checking emails, checking every other notification on social networks, and so on.

My ‘favorite’ distraction is to check emails just before I start working on my article and I keep checking them every 5-10 minutes! According to a study, excessive use of mobile phones promotes academic procrastination.

To be able to completely focus on the intended task, try to minimize distractions. While working or studying, turn off your social media notifications. Check your computer desktop for any distractive icons like games etc. Keep them in a separate folder which is not available easily.

In his book Solving the Procrastination Puzzle: A Concise Guide to Strategies for Change, Timothy A. Pychyl, discusses the importance of minimizing distractions to promote productivity and focus.

Minimizing your distractions will surely help you in focusing on the task at hand!

5. Don’t Be Afraid Of Failure Or Success

A study was held to investigate the relation between fear of failure and procrastination in university students. It was observed that most of the students relied on procrastinating because of the fear of failure even before they started their projects.

It is natural to fail as we are only humans. In some cases, people go through the failure process, learn something, and get back up to start again. But sometimes people start to procrastinate because they fear the results.

My go-to tip to confront this is that before jumping right into the task, take up smaller challenges. Success from these challenges will help you in motivating for the bigger tasks ahead as discussed by Jeffrey Combs in his book The Procrastination Cure.

Discuss your concerns with someone who has gone through the same process and defeated the procrastination ‘demon’. This will help you in changing your perspective for the better!

6. Avoid Being A Perfectionist

“If I can’t complete this job perfectly, then it’s not my cup of tea at all”, “I can’t bear any mistakes during this task. I have to do it perfectly”, or “I can’t work in this kind of environment. I better not do the job at all”.

Above are some of the thoughts which depict a perfectionist. Are you one of them?

I hope not because perfectionism also leads to procrastination! We are always unsatisfied with our results which triggers procrastination in our daily lives.

Remember, we have our productive days as well as non-productive days. We cannot produce great results every time. Try to change your way of thinking.

Try to do the task not just for the sake of results but for the sake of the process itself. Maybe you’ll learn something new along the way!

7. Adopt a Healthy Lifestyle

A prevalent trigger of procrastination is low energy levels. Mental exhaustion, burnout, and tiredness may lead to constant fatigue and low energy which are also caused by our unhealthy lifestyle.

It is important to take care of your physical health as well as mental well-being. Improving your lifestyle will certainly lead to positive changes in your life and help you to finish your tasks on time!

Here are some suggestions for you;

• Avoid eating junk food frequently
• Get enough sleep throughout the day (7-8 hours approx.)
• Include healthy items like fruits and vegetables in your diet
• Make sure to exercise to burnout excessive calories
• Keep yourself hydrated
• Avoid alcohol, smoking, or other unhealthy addictions
• Keep a check on your screen time

Final Thoughts

In my opinion, all the tips or suggestions are nothing if you do not take action. You have to take that first step towards your goal of finishing the task.

In his book, Getting Things Done, David Allen proposes a very efficient way of “dumbing down your brain”. You just need to figure out the action you should take to come a step closer to the bigger task you intend to complete.

As soon as you figure it out, don’t hesitate, and just do it! Now is the time.

I hope this article will help you in changing your perspective on procrastination and aid you in coming out of this trap once and for all!