Really, we all procrastinate. And sometimes it’s okay to take some time off (and not be productive!). But what is the cost of procrastination when it becomes a regular habit?
The True Cost of Procrastination
Procrastination is the act of delaying a task, usually because you dislike or dread it. or because you don’t feel qualified. It may involve avoiding a task you know you should do even though no external factors prevent you from doing the job. In other words, it’s the act of delaying something that needs to be done in favor of checking your Facebook feed or playing a round of “Candy Crush.” Procrastination may also look like cleaning house instead of studying. Anything you do to put off what you should be doing is procrastination.
What is the cost of procrastination?
The cost of procrastination is immense. People who procrastinate may be less productive, have higher stress levels, are likely to get sick, are less creative, and fail to achieve their goals. In addition, procrastination has been linked with depression. Procrastination literally robs you of joy.
Additionally, a procrastinator’s cost is more than just the lost time and money. Living this way makes you feel bad about yourself and your abilities. When you avoid responsibilities for an extended period, it can lead to self-loathing and guilt. If you want to reduce and stop procrastinating, use the following five steps to help you get started.
Step #1: Identify the Behavior to help identify your personal cost of procrastination
The first step is identifying the behavior in yourself. For example, after you’ve decided that you want to stop delaying your responsibilities, it’s time to determine when and where you do it.
Step #2: Decide What Needs to Be Done
Decide when to start the tasks, instead of putting it off until later. To determine what needs to be done, list your goals, as well as the steps involved in attaining your goals, include deadlines for those goals, and the cost of not completing them.
Step #3: Schedule and Remind Yourself
Get everything you want to do and need to do prioritized into your schedule. Also, set a reminder on your phone to not let you forget about that start time. Finally, when you schedule your time, think about the setup and tear down of the actions you’re taking so you allow for enough time.
Step #4: Commit to Success
Your level of commitment determines your level of success, in most cases. Commit to your success by being dedicated to your goals, doing what it takes to reach and achieve success. You also need to put in the hard work, wake up early, stay later, make the tough decisions, and most of all, don’t give up when things go wrong. Find a solution and keep going until you succeed. When you are committed to succeed, you will do whatever it takes to get to the next step. When you are not committed, you will do what is convenient.
Step #5: Reward Yourself
When the time comes, incentivize the job with a small reward for getting started or finishing on time, instead of procrastinating. Create a habit of doing difficult tasks first. When you do this, you don’t feel as if the task is hanging over your head. Rewarding the behavior that you want to achieve by triggering your pleasure center gives you a good reason to eliminate procrastination and reduce the cost of procrastination.
Expectations vs. Reality – Is the Stress Impacting Your Life?
How often have you felt stressed because something didn’t go the way you expected it to? It’s probably happened more than once. One of the greatest expectations that people share is that life should follow a particular course. However, the expectations set are sometimes unrealistic and can cause a great deal of stress.
When you have unrealistic expectations, you want to see the results you hope for rather than the results that are often before you. But life doesn’t always give you what you expectation. Plans go awry. When this happens, you may feel disappointed, sad, or even depressed because the expectations that initially seemed so real at first were never fulfilled.
To avoid the anxiety and stress of unmet expectations, learn how to take life as it comes and live in the here and now. Of course, you can’t control what will happen tomorrow or next week, so instead of thinking about the expectations you have for your future, focus on living today.
High expectations are not always negative; in fact, they may help you achieve your goals and encourage you to reach new heights. However, expectations that you can’t fulfill can cause a lot of stress in your life and prevent you from living in the moment.
If you want to avoid this stress in your life, you need to learn how to let go of unrealistic expectations and view things as they are, not as you want to see them. Here are some valuable tips on how to deal with expectations versus reality.
1. Keep expectations realistic
You must not have expectations that are too high or impossible to fulfill. If you have unrealistic expectations, it means it’s impossible to meet and will only lead to disappointment and stress. Without these expectations, you won’t have any disappointments when they aren’t reached – hence there will be no stress.
2. Let unrealistic expectations go, and set yourself up to reduce the cost of procrastination
Learn to recognize unrealistic expectations. When these expectations aren’t realistically achievable, you must let them go. However, you can change your expectations by incorporating realistic objectives, methods, and goals, which are achievable and within your grasp. In other words, keep it real.
3. Remember the positive aspects of life
Instead of focusing only on your expectations for life, it’s important that you focus on the positive aspects of life that you experience each day. You don’t need expectations to enjoy life; however, you do need gratitude to enjoy your life to its fullest. Just make it a point to see and accept things as they are. Remember there are positives and negatives to everything.
4. Get a New Perspective
It’s beneficial to share your expectations with someone else. They may understand the expectations better and are able to help you identify whether they’re realistic or not. Share your expectations with someone you trust and who is knowledgeable about the topic. If the person has a different perspective that person may be able to help you adjust or improve your expectations.
Whether it’s expectations at work, in your career, or expectations of yourself, learn how to manage them without letting them cause stress and anxiety. Remember that expectations can sometimes lead to disappointments, and it’s vital that you know how to deal with them in a positive and stress-free way.
Scheduling Methods for More Productivity
It may be helpful to think of time like money; if you spend time on things that are not important or useful, it’s just like spending money on things that you don’t want or need. However, unlike cash, you will never get more time.
Sound time management methods can help you become more productive. These methods may include enabling you to plan your time more wisely. This, in turn, helps you keep track of how much time is available per task, what needs to be accomplished, and what needs to be completed by a specific time.
From this perspective, scheduling is considered a form of time management because it allocates specific time slots for specific tasks, instead of generalizing a block of time. To schedule your day for maximum productivity, follow the suggestions below:
Define Your Why
First, define your purpose for the time you want to schedule. For example, is it so you can complete a project by a specific date? Is it so you can do laundry every other day instead of once per week? Defining why you are scheduling time will keep you focused on how important it is to be productive and avoid distractions.
Set Goals
Set specific goals and time limits for each task. Start by writing down all major tasks that need to be completed. Then determine how much time you need for each task, based on what needs to be done. Consider how long it takes to complete in an average situation. Next, break up your time into 30-minute blocks of time.
Schedule Everything
Make Adjustments
Schedule your time accordingly, so you can complete each task with time left over to take breaks and related activities. If you want to be extra productive, take an incremental approach by creating a daily schedule and using time blocks to ensure that you allow enough time to complete your morning routine.
If time was allotted for a task, but you find it’s not working out for you, make adjustments to your schedule until it aligns with the daily schedule needs. If the desired plan cannot be achieved, tasks will need to be prioritized. Consider using the Eisenhower Method to prioritize your schedule.
Efficient scheduling ensures you can complete your most important tasks each day. In addition, it keeps you on track by ensuring you’ve planned enough time and didn’t over-schedule per task. As you use the schedule, you learn what you can be outsource, automate, or delete from your schedule entirely, since it has no impact on your tracking.