It is so common to feel they never have enough time in a day. Most of us never finish work by 6 pm and have to extend our working hours thinking we are being burdened by work. While this may be true in a lot of cases, the more obvious reality is that we don’t manage our time well and keep procrastinating work all the time.
Chronic procrastinators are so natural at pushing things away that they never realize that they have the power to turn things around. It is just a bad habit that makes us delay work, and it can be changed by just making a few adjustments in your attitude. Here are 5 ways to stop being a procrastinator and become more prompt at your work.
1. Understand why you feel the need to procrastinate:
Before you get too hard on yourself about being a procrastinator, first identify the reasons why you feel compelled to do so? Are you just being lazy? Are your external conditions making it difficult to work? Are you not happy with your work?
Sometimes, the reason is as simple as a cluttered workstation. It makes it difficult for you to focus on work. Once you realize what’s making you push work ahead, you can work on changing that.
2. Split work in doable sections:
The number one reason people procrastinate work is that they think of it as a mountain or something too huge to be accomplished in a day. It overwhelms them that they have to finish a lot of tasks within a single day.
To combat this, break down work into small sections that are easy to work on. This makes you feel less stressed and allows you to work promptly. So basically you have a list of doable tasks that you can quickly keep ticking as you finish a small task.
3. Limit your distractions:
A lot of studies have shown that regular distractions lead to procrastination. If you keep getting distracted often, it decreases your concentration levels and lowers your interest in your ongoing work.
So it’s best to find a way to not give in to these distractions. When diving into important work, put your phone on silent mode. Restrict yourself from checking out social media during work hours except during breaks.
4. Track your time:
One of the best ways to stop procrastinating is to track your time to see how you are utilizing your day. Use a free time tracking app to see how much time you invest in a particular activity. This helps you stay alert about spending your time more consciously.
For instance, consider that you are using an employee training software to learn new skills which has short 10-minute videos. If you end up taking 20 minutes to go through one video because you get distracted in between, tracking your time will make you aware of it.
5. Work from a new location:
Our environment affects our work productivity. Switching your work location allows you to think better and enhances your efficiency. Instead of working from the same spot every day, choose a new spot where you are comfortable.
Although the pandemic doesn’t permit working from an outside location, you can at least work in a different area of your home. You can choose to work from the garden or from the balcony instead of sitting in your workstation.
Conclusion:
These are some sure-shot ways to stop delaying work and becoming more prompt. In addition to these, you can give yourself a pep talk about being more focused on work and tell yourself that you will work consistently throughout the day.
