Stop Procrastination: How to Stop Procrastinating and Get Work Done

No one wants to do something right now. They would rather put it off until later and do something else right now. That is just being human. Procrastination affects just about everyone and just stresses people out. Why do people put things off? Basically because they don’t want to do something at a certain time or they have too many things to do right now. Another reason people procrastinate is because they have too much time to do something. Say you have an essay due in one week, are you really going to do it over time or are you going to do it the night before? If you are a hardcore procrastinator, my guess is you will do it the night before. If you do this you will always have that thought in the back of your mind of having to write your paper.

Learning how to stop procrastination will help you get things done now and eliminate stress. The feeling of getting something done on time is like having a weight lifted off of your shoulders. Don’t get me wrong, the adrenaline from getting something done 10 minutes before it is due is a great feeling, but it will catch up to you later in life. Learning how to stop procrastination now will benefit you later on in life.

Follow some of these tips and learn how to stop procrastination. Don’t procrastinate reading these tips, do it now.

Eliminate the Habit of Doing It Later

When you break the habit of doing something later you are already learning how to stop procrastination. Give yourself some reminders that will help you do something now.

Do Your Most Important Task First

A very good rule I have learned is to do your most important task before you do anything else. So, write that paper before checking your Facebook or MySpace. If have done your most important thing first then you have already been productive that day. This will give you a great feeling but get in that habit first.

Take a Few Minutes With Something

If you have something to do, take about 10 minutes and start on it. You will probably be working on it for more than 10 minutes because once you get over the hurdle of starting something, it is hard to finish. At least that rule applies to me.

Make an Outline

When I write papers I always write an outline and break it down. This may seem like more work and not something you want to do, but in the long term it will actually help you. Take a few minutes and write up a small outline. Hopefully the motivation will lead you to start the entire thing.

Learn to Love Your Work

Procrastination is sometimes felt because you hate what you are doing. When you learn to have fun and love what you are doing, it helps eliminate that feeling of putting something off until later. I used to hate writing papers, but now I don’t really mind it because l learned that the pros outweigh the cons.

30-10 Rule

Another great thing I learned that helps stop procrastination is something called the 30-10 rule. I really like this rule so I am going to pass this on to you. Basically what this rule is is you set a timer for 30 minutes. During this time you work as hard as you can. Then when the 30 minutes is up you set another timer for 10 minutes. During this 10 minutes do something that you like. Check your e-mail, Facebook, or grab a snack. Once the time is up set your timer for 30 minutes again. Keep repeating this until your task is completed. Another one is the 10-2 rule, which is basically the same thing as the 30-10 rule, except with 10 minutes of work and 2 minutes of break. This goes great with the “do you most important thing first” rule.

Reward Yourself

After you are finished reward yourself. This is a great way to help stop procrastination because it gives you something to look forward to after you finish. It also gives you something to work for, which will make what you are doing more enjoyable. If you make something fun, you are probably more likely to complete your task.

Eliminate Distractions

This is one of the best tips a procrastinator can learn. Turn off television, games, clear unnecessary papers from your desk, and close out of other pages that may distract you. When you eliminate distractions you are learning how to stop procrastination.

Keep Track of How Much Time You Waste

When you really look at it procrastination is a huge waste of time. With all of that time wasted you could have written two or three papers. Keep a track, maybe it will scare you out of procrastination.

Make sure you are prepared

Do you research now, get ready and write that outline. You are more likely to do something when you are prepared for it. Once you learn to prepare for your work you will be less likely to procrastinate.

Do Something Else While Procrastinating

I know this promotes procrastination, which is really not something I wanted to do, but if you do a smaller task before your larger task you will actually be getting something done while procrastinating. This way you can get multiple tasks done early before you tackle your big project.

Have a “Goal Buddy”

Get together with a friend. You your friend can push each other to get something done. If they slack tell them to pick it up and vice-versa. Help each other eliminate distractions and focus more on the work. I know for a fact this works because my friend and I do it all of the time.

All of the above tips are very good tips to learn how to stop procrastination. When you learn how to stop procrastination you will make yourself happier because you will no longer have that weight on your shoulders.