Beating Procrastination - Part 1

Beating Procrastination
Manage Your Time. Get It All Done.

If you’ve found yourself putting off important tasks over and over again, you’re not alone. In fact, many people procrastinate to some degree - but some are so chronically affected by procrastination that it stops them achieving things they\'re capable of and disrupts their careers.

The key to controlling and ultimately combating this destructive habit is to recognize when you start procrastinating, understand why it happens (even to the best of us), and take active steps to better manage your time and outcomes.

Why do we Procrastinate?

In a nutshell, you procrastinate when you put off things that you should be focusing on right now, usually in favor of doing something that is more enjoyable or that you’re more comfortable doing.

Procrastinators work as many hours in the day as other people (and often work longer hours) but they invest their time in the wrong tasks. Sometimes this is simply because they don\'t understand the difference between urgent tasks and important tasks, and jump straight into getting on with urgent tasks that aren\'t actually important.

They may feel that they\'re doing the right thing by reacting fast. Or they may not even think about their approach and simply be driven by the person whose demands are loudest. Either way, by doing this, they have little or no time left for the important tasks, despite the unpleasant outcomes this may bring about.

Another common cause of procrastination is feeling overwhelmed by the task. You may not know where to begin. Or you may doubt that you have the skills or resources you think you need. So you seek comfort in doing tasks you know you\'re capable of completing. Unfortunately, the big task isn\'t going to go away – truly important tasks rarely do.

Other causes of procrastination include:
8226; Waiting for the “right” mood or the “right” time to tackle the important task at hand
8226; A fear of failure or success
8226; Underdeveloped decision making skills
8226; Poor organizational skills
8226; Perfectionism (I don\'t have the right skills or resources to do this perfectly now, so I won\'t do it at all.)


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This article came from one of my favorite sites: http://www.mindtools.com.
Part II will be posted tomorrow talking about how to beat procrastination.
I am sort of a procrastinator which is a bad habit.

Have a nice weekend.