We all struggle with procrastinating at times. The problem is when this part of us becomes more extreme and causes extra stress and anxiety in our lives. I am sure you have tried lots of different things to help with procrastination, or you would not be here now. 

The issue sometimes is that we know what we need to do to help reduce procrastination but still struggle to put those plans into action, the cycle continues.

I find the more compassionate you can be with yourself when it comes to motivating yourself, the easier it is to take action. Many of us have an inner critic that motivates us, and this can work to an extent but in the long term, it can be hard to be our best when we are in shame. 

I am going to outline a number of small tips and action steps you can take that will help you overcome procrastination with great ease and flow.

5 Tips To Overcome Procrastination

1. Know Your Why

Why is it important that you get done what you need to get done? What is the bigger picture? Sometimes focusing on the larger picture of why we have to do certain tasks can help with motivation. Reminding yourself of your why can help with motivation to cook a healthy meal, get that exercise in, or start that large project early.

Sometimes it can be helpful when you know something will be challenging to write yourself a letter to read when you are feeling like you want to procrastinate. This letter can remind you of your why and coach yourself through that moment.

2. The 5 Second Rule

Motivational speaker and business coach Mell Robins created The 5 Second Rule which is a motivational tool. This rule states that when you have the impulse to act on a goal you have to push yourself to act within 5 seconds or your brain will convince you out of it. 

We all have the impulse to start the project, eat healthily, go for the walk, etc. but we often talk ourselves out of it as quickly as it came. To use this rule to help you overcome procrastination when you have the impulse count backward from 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and then act.

3. Optimize Your Environment

Designing your environment (your living room, office, bedroom, digital environment, friend group, etc.) in a way that supports your health and well-being will help boost your productivity.

For example, if you want to work out more leave your yoga mat and weights out where you can see them. Need to focus, put your phone on silent or leave it in the other room for a set period of time. Need encouragement, leave affirmations around your house to inspire you to stay on track. Try surrounding yourself with goal-reminders that you can easily see such as on the fridge or posted on your office wall.

4. Motivation Comes After Action

It is also helpful to remember that motivation comes after action. Too often we wait for motivation to kick in before we start something but sometimes it never comes. Think about times you have not felt like doing something like a workout or starting a project and then once you started you got into the flow of it and got the motivation. Remembering the rules that often motivation comes after action can help get you started rather than waiting around for it to show up because it might not come in time.

5. Reward Yourself

The behaviors you reinforce will strengthen. If you can take this behavioral approach to procrastination, you can reward yourself for taking action and getting something done, this will reinforce the behaviors and make it more likely in the future.

You can reward yourself in a number of different ways such as practicing internal praise. When you get something done you can internally praise yourself. Take the time to acknowledge your accomplishments and celebrate your successes. You can also reward yourself with small things like having a delicious smoothy after a run or watching a bit of tv or checking social media after you accomplish a task you have been putting off. Lots of positive behaviors take time to see rewards so if you can give yourself small immediate gratifications you will make it easier to accomplish more with ease and avoid procrastination.