Punch Out Procrastination

Interestingly, 1 in 4 people consider themselves to be procrastinators.

It's easy to start late, get distracted by social media, lose focus to kids that need attention, and having trouble fitting in a new activity that you are passionate about.

Before you push a boulder down the hill, the hardest part is getting it to the ledge.

Your chance at success increases when you work on the hardest task first.

What’s the fix?

Start with the hard thing first, schedule time to work on it daily, and deliver it before the due date so you can do everything else without the back of your mind wondering when you're finally going to get around to that most important task you needed to start 2 weeks ago.

So why haven't you done this yet? I'll get to that later. (I promise)

What is the most important task to work on today?

There is something in everyone's life that should be taking precedence but gets pushed to the backburner because it's the most difficult.

Overwhelm is inevitable without a schedule or plan.

Feeling overwhelmed is a sign of a poorly organized structure.

"I have too many things to do today"

Bad news, everyone does.Good news, there is a solution!

An effective person does not blame others for not being able to complete the tasks they have to do to keep them healthy, wealthy, happy and in good company.

How do we fix this?

Subconscious needs to take the backseat

Organizing your thoughts is the height of ordered articulation.That's a lot of big words, dude.You are a creature of thought, both conscious and unconscious. Your thoughts make perfect sense to you, there is no dissonance.When you try explaining those thoughts for someone to understand, it takes a great effort if you have no practice.Conscious expression is what we control, unconscious expression is our programmed thoughts.

You will spend less energy if you start early and get it over with.

You eat the metaphorical frog and move along to the next one (preferably a smaller one).

Everything that is great was first made of nothing.

• Pizza

• Fitness goals

• Relationships

• Self educating

• Personal growth

• Rome (the obvious one!)

None of these were achieved from one day of effort, nor were they easy to do.

So, what's the first step?

Commitment.

Interested or committed?

Being committed to a project is the most useful way to trudge through the thick fog of mental friction required to get to your goal.

If you're interested in something, it will pass by without a second thought.

If you're committed, it's like having a 9-5 job, an obligation, something that is necessary in your daily routine to get to the end of the day and say to yourself "I did that because I had to".

What are some things you have committed to in the past?

Goals worth your effort:

• Exercise

• Self discovery

• Significant other

• Diet and nutrition

• Cleaning your room

• Healing your anxiety

Even going for a run is a commitment itself. You're a traveler of the open world, with no method to return quickly.

Your greatest accomplishments come from responsibility, the difference now is that you're going to choose what you need to do.

Choose your path

Now you know that you have to do what's hard first through scheduling, consciously, and committing to doing it everyday.

What's the last step?

Pick a lane and stay in it.

Multitasking is great for learning where your gaps of knowledge are, but consider picking one path to go down before deciding to take on multiple projects.

Your singular focus is both the enemy and a blessing.

Use that attention to your advantage. You can accomplish a lot in a year.

In 2 years I:

• Lost 70 lbs

• Healed my marriage

• Conquered my depression and anxiety

• Repaired my relationship with my children

You can achieve things that people only dream of.

In the next 2 years I plan to:

• Coach others to build their self esteem

• Run an hour in the snow (bare-chested)

• Build my understanding of writing/learning

• Improve the functions of my family (to facilitate genuine happiness and the best learning environment)

These are goals that people have done before, you only need to take micro steps towards them before you're taking giant strides.

You can accomplish a lot when you reduce your friction. So, let's recap below:

4 steps towards getting through procrastination:

1. Make the commitment

 • Write down the most important goal you want to accomplish. In fact write down ten, and pick your favorite one.

• Set daily, weekly, monthly goals to achieve. (Notion templates coming for this.) 

 2. Focus on one step at a time

• Your major goal should be in the back of your mind, in a healthy "you can do this" way.

• The micro goals for today will lead to larger goals for tomorrow. You will grow more confident with each tiny step you take. 

 3. Set a deadline

Ex. You have 14 days to do a project that takes 4 sessions minimum.

•Make a deadline everyday, spend 10 minutes on your goal by this daily deadline.

Turn 14 days into 4 parts:

• Days 1-4: ideate • Days 5-8: edit • Days 9-12: polish • Days 13-14: last minute touches Set reminders on your phone, leave sticky notes for yourself on your mirror, any way to remind you of the things that are most important.

 4. Work towards the most important goal once a day

• Prioritize slaying the dragon as the first thing you do everyday.                                That sounds pretty scary.As a procrastinator, when you begin to picture it like that, you defeat yourself before you can even begin.

As soon as you challenge that monster of a task, you will find out that you were capable of surviving all along.

You will grow more confident:

• You're finally doing what you needed to do• You find out how to be more effective

Summary

Take action against your procrastination starting next week (plan today).If you accomplish one thing, email me, I'd love to hear from you.

These are the steps I will personally take in the next two weeks to deliver my newsletter to you, my new friends, the people who have invested their time into me.

You are the creator of great things when you take small steps, one day at a time.