“I could have done this….”, “I should have done that…”.We all have plans for our future. But how many of us work according to the plan? Imagine, You have just grabbed your pen and paper and finally managed to sit for a study session. Does your monkey mind say,” Let’s check Instagram just for 5 minutes, and bang! You spend 1 hour just mindlessly scrolling your Instagram feed. The more you procrastinate, the larger will be the gap between your reality and expectations.

Track your time: Einstein said, “ Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result”. If you want to bring a great change in your life, track your time and find in which sector most of the time is being invested. If you are using social media for 3 hours a day, then set a goal of reducing the time on social media by 10 minutes per day.

Self-Education: Consume educational content for some time of the day. It will sharpen your mind, have a broader perspective of life, and enrich your life with the knowledge that helps you to make decisions wisely and boost your cognitive function. Self-learning habits will make your mind younger.

Intentional relaxation: Take your relaxation time intentionally. After productively completing a work session, take a break. And in this break, instead of watching tv or Netflix, read or exercise. And be mindful of your break and how you can use it to level up your energy.

Know the resistance: One of the main reasons behind procrastination is resistance. We do not resist watching Netflix or scrolling through social media, but we resist quite a lot doing certain things that matter for the betterment of our future selves. Fear of failure is the main reason for resistance. The more we are scared of doing a certain task, the more we care about it and the more important it is. So, we can use fear as a compass for the importance of a task and should do it immediately.

Now the question arrives how to just start doing what we should do in the first place? Follow some tactics:

2-min rule: The job needs only 2 minutes to be done, do it now. It can be making your bed, washing your plate, etc

5 min rule: Honestly, most of the tasks require more than 2 minutes. If a task seems difficult and challenging to you, persuade your mind by saying, you will do it only for 5 minutes. But after 5 minutes, you will discover that you are in the flow state which creates momentum. That momentum will make you finish the job.

Input goal: We often focus on the output goal. It means, we want to achieve the things that are out of our control. For example, if we want to achieve a specific grade, then it would be the output goal. Achieving a specific grade is not in our circle of control, but the effort we can make is definitely in our control. setting a goal of studying for 5 hours per day is an input goal.

First work, motivation comes after it: Motivation doesn’t come first. If you start working, motivation is a by-product of the work. Motivation is not the cause of action, it is the result of the action. The action comes first and motivation comes second. We need discipline and habit. Discipline makes us get things done and frequently doing the same thing makes it a habit. If we make a habit, then we will need less willpower and motivation.

Benefits of overcoming procrastination:

You can’t get life twice! This is the only journey and you should make the most of it. Procrastination leads you to the self-control journey. Your work and progress don’t rely on your “feeling”. It increases your self-esteem as you know you have put in the right effort at the right time. You avoid the regret of not doing the thing you had planned a long time ago. You can tackle your problems before letting them grow. You can be the best version of yourself and tap the highest potential.

Mental Health & Wellness Blog

Top habits to avoid procrastination