Stop Procrastination in its Tracks with Help from Our NYC Professional Organizer

Procrastination plagues us all. Whether we’re uncomfortable starting a task, overwhelmed or simply dreading a certain item on our to-do list, we are all guilty of putting things off for longer than we should. Our NYC Professional Organizer is here to help you recognize it’s signs before you’ve delayed the tasks for too long and to help you overcome procrastination.

Identifying Procrastination

Sometimes we’re honest with ourselves about our procrastination. We make the conscious effort to move on to other tasks rather than completing more pressing issues. In other situations, we may not even realized that we are procrastinating. Our NYC Professional Organizer points out 5 surefire ways to identify procrastination

1. Completing items on your to do-list in reverse order, tackling low priority tasks before addressing more pressing items.
2. Leaving important tasks on your to-do list day after day.
3. Changing focus almost immediately after beginning to work on a high priority task. This includes stopping to answer emails, make phone calls, load the dishwasher, etc.
4. Agreeing to requests from others (even for tasks that you generally avoid) instead of addressing the items already on your to-do list.
5. Checking all forms of communication – email, voicemail, text messages, even social media – hoping that a more pressing matter will come up.

Now that you’re able to truly tell if you’re procrastinating, even if you don’t mean to, you’re ready to face your procrastination head on. Here are 6 tips from our NYC Professional Organizer to help you stop procrastination in its tracks.

1. Make tasks you generally avoid part of your routine by identifying them and completing them as often as necessary for 21 days.
2. Tackle the tasks that you dread first. By completing and crossing them off your list in the morning you’ll give yourself a sense of relief for the rest of the day. If this strategy doesn’t work for you, you could also try scheduling these tasks for a time at which you’re at a peak energy level.
3. Simply start working on the tasks you’ve been putting off. Once you start working on them, it’s likely that you’ll build momentum to carry you through. As Mark Twain said, “the secret of getting ahead is getting started.”
4. Divide the task into a series of smaller steps. Four tasks that will take 15 minutes each are a lot easier to approach than one which will take an hour.
5. Use a realistic deadline to determine your start date. If you know when the task must be completed and how long it will take, then you will have a good idea of when you’ll need to get started. Just be sure to stick to this date.
6. Give yourself a reward for completing a dreaded task, whether it’s a new pair of shoes, a special meal, or simply a walk around the block, having something to look forward to once the task is complete will surely make it more attractive.

Tackling procrastination is the first step in making the most of our time. Give these tips a try and let our team know how you did.