Plowing Through Procrastination

By Maureen Bonatch

 

When I read stories full of magic and unique abilities there are many that I’d like to have, although one often comes to mind for the everyday world. That’s the ability to tap into ongoing motivation. 

You know, those days when you wake up and hit the ground running. When nothing can stand in your way from tackling that To-Do list with ease. Those mountains from yesterday suddenly seem like mole-hills—as if you’d drank a magic elixir that made most of your worries disappear.

 

It seems very much like some kind of super power because often the next day, or week, I’ll wake up and that motivation has fizzled away and I’m slumped in a pool of procrastination or weighed down by tasks that seem insurmountable. 

I’m left wondering what caused my motivation to depart and wishing I could’ve bottled that magic elixir full of motivation to draw upon as needed.

 

Bottling Up the Magic

 

Sometimes the only magic elixir necessary might be your morning beverage of choice—coffee here. Other days, it’s just plowing in and hoping that once you get warmed up to the tasks, things will seem easier. 

Other things I’ve found that might affect my productivity can include:

 

Attitude

Perception of the task at hand, and the attitude surrounding it, might make a difference in the ability to complete it with ease. I’ve heard this referred to as starting the day by ‘eating the frog’. I’m not certain how a poor frog came to represent the most undesirable or dreaded task for the day, but the idea is to do the most difficult task first and get it out of the way so the rest of the day goes more smoothly. That way you feel awesome for crossing that big item off your To-Do list!

 

Time of Day

Most of us relate to thinking of ourselves as an early bird, or a night owl, which relates to our most energetic and productive time of day. As an early bird myself, by the end of the day even simple tasks can seem overwhelming. By then I’ve depleted my energy for the day, so I save the most difficult tasks for morning and make the most of my energy at then.

 

Benefits

What’s the benefit of completing this task? If there’s a reward at the end, even if it’s knowing you’ve gotten to the bottom of the laundry pile, it can provide a little motivation. If it’s a routine task that we have to do frequently, often we forget what benefits they might bring. Also the temptation to procrastinate might be stronger depending upon who this benefits. Such as who’s going to notice if I don’t do this? Or we may tend to do more for others than for ourselves.

 

Timeframe

Things such as how long a task takes can play into the desire to get to work. Sometimes a task—such as writing a novel—takes a long time before seeing the result and can make it easy to procrastinate. Although in the end, that makes that timeframe even longer.

 

Taking My Own Advice

 

It’s easy to dish out advice to others, look at their issues, dig into the root of the problem and then offer suggestions to get out of the rut of procrastination, it’s not always so easy to apply those principles ourselves. I procrastinated writing this blog by telling myself I had nothing to write about...because I'd been procrastinating on my writing.

 

 

How Do You Stop Procrastinating and Get Motivated?

 

Author Bio: Maureen Bonatch grew up in small town Pennsylvania and her love of the four seasons—hockey, biking, sweat pants and hibernation—keeps her there. While immersed in writing or reading paranormal romance and fantasy, she survives on caffeine, wine, music, and laughter. A feisty Shih Tzu keeps her in line. Find Maureen on her website, Facebook & Twitter

 

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