procrastination - (n) the action of delaying or postponing something.
This is NOT a photo of me procrastinating. This is a photo of me enjoying one of my favorite things—waterfalls.
Delay, avoid, make excuses, dawdle, dally, drag your feet, postpone—whatever word you use, procrastination can mean big problems for accomplishing your goals.
While I hate to admit this in writing, I procrastinate cleaning. Clutter, dust, dog hair, I’ll think of 10,000 things to do before I get in there and clean. And I’m not kidding — I’ll mow the grass, weed the garden, write 12 emails, schedule lunch —all before I’m willing to take 5 minutes to clean the counter.
But to achieve my goals (like living in a nice environment), I have to buckle down and get the work done.
Work-wise, I never procrastinate client work. I put myself and my business LAST and over the years, I found this is a big mistake. Successful entrepreneurs focus on their business FIRST. When you see them on social media, in my in-box, you know they have more going on that just that post or email, but they are still getting it out the door.
So, what do you do? Regardless of how and why you procrastinate, here’s a few things I’ve found help me get things done (even when I don’t want to do them).
Schedule the work. I’m a stickler for this. YOU CAN’T ACCOMPLISH YOUR GOALS without making time for them. Dedicate time on your calendar to work on your stuff. I try to remind you of that on Thursdays at 10 a.m., but lately I’ve slipped. That time really needs to be sacred for me and for you!
Outsource the work. If it is super important to you, but you don’t have the time or inclination or are stuck even starting it, outsource. This can be a struggle for an entrepreneur who has limited resources, but there are lots of options. Maybe you can’t completely outsource your social media promotion, but you can get input on your content and help with an editorial calendar.
Get input. If you’ve set your goals, but you don’t know how to achieve them, get help. A Strategy Session with me is a great start. We’ll dive into your goals and come up with a plan for achieving them, so you’ll leave with steps in place to move forward. Whether you work with me or have a trusted advisor you can go to, getting input gets you unstuck.
Find an accountability partner. This has been key in my business and my life. By telling my accountability partner what I’m planning to do puts it out in the world. My pride won’t let me shirk on my own work if I’ve set the goal, scheduled it and shared it.
Now, get out there and get it done! Let me know how I can help.