Procrastination is an efficiency thief and can be crippling. I've been stuck there many times before and often catch myself falling back into it. Whenever it hits me, I turn to these four remedies to get back on track.
1. Ask Yourself Why
Is it lack of motivation, lack of sleep, excess stress, lack of interest, fear of failure or perhaps you just haven't had your morning cup of coffee? Before you can fix the problem you need an understanding of why it exists in the first place. We can pretend as much as we like that we're not procrastinating on finishing (or starting!) a task, but deep down we know when we are. Admit it to yourself and figure out why.
2. Get Yourself In Order
Prioritize and write a list. Then do one thing at a time. Arianna Huffington once told me, "there's no such thing as multi-tasking. It's called task switching. Multi-tasking is a delusion." Task switching is completely ineffective. Work out what's the most important and start there. It's so easy to tackle the little jobs first, but you'll feel an incredible weight off your chest once that numero uno is ticked off. Time management is vital too, but be a little bit flexible here. I know people who are so rigid with their time management that if something runs over time or not to plan, their whole world caves in and they struggle to get back on the wagon.
3. Master The Self-Talk
Your inner voice is always there. It's the one saying you don't need that chocolate bar, or that you're having a bad hair day. As women we're so good at being hard on ourselves, but imagine if you could train that inner voice to motivate you. Actually ... you can. Remember when you were eight and you decided you wanted to learn to ride a bike or play the piano? That success was a combination of practice and mindset - you can use that formula here too. Practice, practice, practice and remind yourself you can do it. A mantra I learnt early on is 'if it is to be, then it's up to me.'
4. Reward Yourself
You did it! Give yourself a pat on the back, keep that promise you made yourself of five extra minutes on your lunch break, or even allow yourself that chocolate bar (your inner voice won't notice - it's too busy telling you how awesome you are.)
This post originally appeared on emmaisaacs.com and is republished here with full permission.