Procrastination - any tips?

[Hohiro]

Hey,

 

i am suffering heavy from procrastination at work at the moment.

Any tips of getting started and just doing things?

 

I just want to get my work done, but i just cant start. I allready read motivational quotes and stuff, but i cant fight through this.

Even my guilty conscience is not enough of a motivation.

 

Even start to hate myself because im so lazy..

[JPrev]

And that's why motivation isn't worth pursuing.  All the motivation in the world may still result in nothing.

 

Just start working.  Like anything else, the beginning is the hardest part.  Power through your initial mental resistance to the task, and then you'll have momentum and it'll feel great.

 

And close Nerd Fitness and any other site you may have open right now not related to work.

[StillWaters]

Try breaking your work down into small, simple steps. Then say to yourself "I'm going to do this one step." Once it's done, cross it off the list, and move on to the next step.

[Frost of the Gloaming]

coffee and this work for me

 

 

 

Guttermouth - Can I borrow some Ambition

[Hohiro]

thanks for the advice..

After reading this, i closed the NF site and started working.... for 10 Minutes... then i came back here...... instead of working.

Realy realy hard to just do it..

 

At the beginning of the day, i make "work packages" in my Outlook. But i cant keep it going

[Hohiro]

sorry..... accidential double post ---------

[JPrev]

There's an endless amount of people who would love to have a job right now.  If your employer sees that you can't get the energy to work more than 10 minutes, the company will find someone who can.

 

This is purely a self discipline issue.  There are no tricks to give you the spirit you need to work hard and achieve: that has to come from YOU.  If you can't get excited about your current job, then maybe you need to find one that's better aligned with your interests.  It's tough to love your job 100% of the time.  It's not reasonable to expect you can give 100% effort 100% of the time.  But you need to be on far more often than you're off.  If the job sucks, try to find a new one.  If finding a new one isn't much of an option, then you need to keep in mind all the things your current job is enabling, even if the work doesn't inspire you.  It's giving you money (probably), it's giving you experience.  These are all things that will help provide for the life that you and those who may depend on you want.  Maybe the current job is just a stepping stone, but so long as your foot is on that stone, you need to make it work.

 

Unless you're rich or have no one depending on you, the world isn't kind to those who are simply lazy.  Find your drive, Hohiro!!

[Hohiro]

realy, i will read this post above every morning.

Thanks man, think you opened my eyes.

 

I will report my progress in this thread tomorrow (evening, after work!).

[JPrev]

Remember, the laziness is all in your head!  Just hang with the tasks at hand no matter how much you'd rather procrastinate, and you'll soon build momentum to carry you through the rest of the day.  It feels so much better being active than passive - you'll get addicted in no time!

[Ahyar Dreamspark]

Sometimes I use the 20-second berzerker mode strategy to do the most trivial things, like getting simple tasks started.

 

I'll use the present scenario as an example: I hate my life, and a better job would likely make me feel better (and, you know, provide me with a living wage). However, I am having a blah right now. You know the type. Fuck everything and I have no energy to do anything and my work/writing isn't even good enough anyway and...ugh. Mindless surfing of the Internet it is.

 

So I'll use the 20 second berzerker mode to...hold on, it's coming. Feel the fury rising...almost...yes, I can do something! WORLD, FEAR MY WRATH! I can TAKE MY LAPTOP OUT OF MY BOOK BAG AND OPEN IT AND PRESS THE POWER BUTTON TO TURN IT ON!

 

By the time that's all done, the 20 seconds will be up. If I'm still running high on adrenaline I might even plug it in, but there's no guarantee. Hell, the battery will last a few hours anyway. But the point is that now the laptop with the unfinished cover letter on it is now open and ready to go. The process has been started, and if you're anything like me, starting things is the hardest part.

 

This strategy can also be used for things like replying to emails. I wish I was joking when I say that I need to do this for practically any task :\ Also, if anyone reading this happen to be an employer, disregard anything I wrote here. I'm a super-motivated employee with sky-high confidence and optimism, and I work best in stressful situations and with tight deadlines Hire me plz.

 

Where do you work btw?

 

 

EDIT: My laptop is totally open right now.

[Hohiro]

I thank you all so much!

I cant describe how you guys help me here. You guys are awesome.

Tomorrow i will remember that laziness is in my head and that i will build that momentum.

There is no time to waste!

20-Second Berzerker mode incoming!

 

Sorry, you may understand that i cant tell my employer here.

Its in the IT-Sector though.

 

realy im so thankful for your words guys (and girls)!

[Nekobeko]

Procrastination is my weakness too. I used to work in IT as well so I know how slow those days can be at times.

Very good advice given by everyone so far. For me what's helping massively is Habit RPG (only found out about it a few days ago so now I can't shut up about it lol)

But it allows me to split my day into loads of tiny goals. Each goal I complete earns me xp and gold, but if I do a bad thing I lose health. I can buy rewards (like watch a movie on netflix) with the gold I earn.

My tasks include:

Brush teeth morning and evening

Move dirty laundry from floor to hamper

Drink 2L of water

Get out of the house

Nail biting (- health)

Staying on computer after 10pm (- health)

It might no be for you but check it out (but not when you're at work!)

https://habitrpg.com

[Rooks]

Right there with you guys.  I struggle with it big time.  I'll go on spurts where I'll be super productive for 2-3 weeks, then procrastinate for a month or so (and just do enough to get by). 

[mzmtg]

[Tea&Scones]

Seems you've gotten a lot of good advice already here about motivation and self discipline. If you're still having trouble being distracted by your computer and the internet though then this may help: http://getcoldturkey.com/ I've used a similar program before to force me to study without being able to drift over to read that one reddit post and might help you on those days where you are really having trouble getting started.

 

I'll also back Habit RPG as Nekobeko mentioned - saw it on a post here and it's really a really fun way of getting yourself motivated!

[Hohiro]

Sorry, I could not answer anytime before now, because i was so busy working.

You guys are so awesome, and I cant thank you enough for encouraging me.

 

Steve wrote an awesome post about procrastination. And I try to tell myself these words daily!

I think i am on the right track.

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2013/02/14/three-words-that-you-need-to-tell-yourself-daily/

 

Thank you so much NF community.

 

@rooks! you can do it too.

Just ask yourself why you can do it in your "sprints" and keep up the momentum from then.

It's okay if you are not "in the zone" 100% of your time. Just tell yourself you can do it and you will do it.

I love this feeling after a hard work day in the evening. This "YES I DID IT" moment is priceless.