Overcoming procrastination technique

[simon]

I wanted to throw this out to see how people react to it when they try this technique. It works for me, but lets set the scene first.

It's either morning and you really cant get yourself together, get motivated to do anything, feel depressed, etc; or its the afternoon and you haven't done anything of note in that day- so you're even more annoyed with yourself!

Try this - it does work for me!

The universe rewards action, therefore we need to immediately get you to completing some small tasks that you know that you can do.

Here’s how we do it- take a word processor, or pen and paper, PDA, or whatever you feel works for you and list twenty really small tasks that you can do right now, as soon as you’ve finished the list.

The only reason for failing at this is that you’ll either get distracted, you’ve picked a task that you really were not ready to do, you physically ran out of time or you didn’t do the tasks in the correct frame of mind. The final reason is probably most important- you really have to do a self-analysis on yourself and your self-esteem to properly ‘get it’.

In reality it doesn't matter at all what the tasks are- what matters is that you've chosen twenty small tasks that are totally doable; and then you do them! The first time I tried this here's my sample list (i've replaced my clients names with <> - im a webdesigner)

1. Do the washing up
2. Put my clothes out to dry
3. Put all my papers and paperwork into one pile on a shelf
4. Delete ten old emails that I don’t need anymore
5. Upload <> Ticket System to their servers
6. Find out why some of the images are broken in < >
7. Template the remaining images for < >
8. Create an invoice for the setup of the ecommerce shop
9. Find a copy of the terms and conditions for
10. Clear up my laptops desktop
11. Make some pasta and mincemeat for dinner
12. Clean up the stuff off from my floor
13. Close the cupboard doors
14. Take the rubbish out
15. Clean up the bathroom
16. Read the next chapter on the smoking book
17. Phone mum and dad to see how they are
18. Put my clothes where they belong
19. Do the <> updates
20. Make a small quick list for how to approach the <> update

The amazing thing was, that I did this so amazingly quickly that once I had got through all of these steps I felt an amazing sense of accomplishment.

This technique really kick starts my positive emotions whenever I take the time and effort to do this. You can literally start from a totally depressive stance and this should work for you.

Does this work for anyone else?

[norbert]

This does really work. Have you seen:

Microtasks
Why Your To-Do List Sucks

I find 20 a bit too much. I'm comfortable with 5-7 microtasks at once.

[angelairene]

Hi Simon,
I like your technique. It sounds good in theory, but I find that when I am procrastinating, the last thing I want to do is make a list of all the things that need to be done.
I have a couple of ideas I'd like to throw out there.
When ever i find myself procrastinating something, first I acknowledge that that's what I'm doing and I allow myself. Second, I visualize myself doing it, I see myself enjoying it. I estimate how much time it will really take me, and after thinking about it, it usually seems much simpler than I was making it out to be. This is so quick and simple and it seems to work everytime. Within a couple of days I've gotten it done.

Another thing I do is to acknowledge what I'm doing instead of the thing I am procrastinating. 9 times out of 10, if I have something important I am putting off, I will find so many other things that need to be done, things that wouldnt otherwise get done if I werent trying so hard not to do the other thing. I give myself a pat on the back for at least getting something accomplished and then I do the first technique.
Peace
Angie

[simon]

I like your technique. It sounds good in theory, but I find that when I am procrastinating, the last thing I want to do is make a list of all the things that need to be done.

That's the idea. Because you are procrastinating you need to make at least that tiny effort to put this list together. It's all about getting momentum together. If you are feeling pretty lifeless and unmotivated, then you should still be able to get this list down with 20 tasks that you feel that you can carry out. Once you've done the list and know that you can actually do them, it's a lot easier to go for it and act. Then once you've got over your initial inertia and completed the tasks, reward yourself, and then perhaps go onto the more difficult tasks.

I find that when people say start the day off with the most difficult task, if you really aren't in the state of mind where you feel capable of doing it, then you will make things worse for yourself. This technique simply gets you moving.

Visualising the task - for instance visualising you performing a certain number of pressups can really help.

I'm experimenting with a 30 day trial of which I use this technique every day. I've never managed to keep doing something for 30 days straight, but because of the simplicity of this task, I'm definate that I can do this. The results I'm looking to get from this are increased concentration, willpower and general better self-esteem. The article Steve wrote on time management actually got me into this because he said that the general mindset of time management is the key. It's your self-esteem that you need to grow before you can become effective at time management. That's what I'm aiming for.

Any further comments welcome

[finandom]

Hey I try this technique today and it works best with me!
However, I just keep the list short. I afraid the long list will scare me away.

[javamannen2]

I use a Post-it pad for my micro-tasks, 1 page per day. At the top of the page I write today's date. For each todo item I draw a little checkbox, and when the task is finished, I tick the box. At the end of the day I cross over any unfinished tasks that are not super-important, and write a big "OK" at the bottom of the page. This physical act of confirmation gives me a sense of accomplishment. But then I just throw the page away to get a clean slate for tomorrow I don't want to get obsessive about it. I usually don't have more than 5 or so microtasks written down at any one time, to make it feel more manageable. I often do the tasks out-of-order to mix it up. It's better to do something even if I'm procrastinating on something more important. Also, if I get stuck e.g websurfing when I know I should be doing some work, I might as well make a task out of the surfing, e.g to visit a certain site or forum, or read a blog. If I'm tired I might even make it a task to take a nap

What you decide to do is not as important as the fact that you first decided to do it, wrote it down, and then actually did it!

[Jim11]

I find that now that I am in the habit of just starting on any small task without contemplating what needs to be done, it is much easier for me. Once I've done a couple easy tasks without thinking much about it I get going, and I usually end up saying to myself "might as well get it all done so I don't have to worry about it"

although I have no strong religious beliefs, studying various works on Buddhism and Taoism (among other) has made my mind much calmer... and this has helped procrastination a great deal as well.