Turning Procrastination into Motivation (includes my Daily Priorities Worksheet for FREE).

Okay, we say to ourselves, it's a busy day. Lets do this.

Then we get a beep, a notification, a text, a random thought about how we've been meaning to check out the prices at the new gym or see who our team is playing this weekend, or book our child into the dentist .... and so starts the web wander. We stumble from page to page lurching at the next shiny thing, only to emerge drenched by the unproductive weight of a long surf on the web. We glance at the time and declare 'I am sooo busy! Where has the morning gone? ' 

Dealing with distraction attraction, procrastination, determining priorities and maintaining motivation are crucial skills to cultivate in our connected times if you want to stay focused and have productive outputs. 

DISTRACTION

Apparently we can partly blame our mammalian ways for the innate desire to be connected to others. And those pings that come with notifications? Well they  release dopamine and keep us coming back for more, like an addicted gambler waiting for their pay out song. Dealing with distraction is a skill that is fundamentally essential to modern life.

Here's some tips for dulling distraction.

• Of course THE BIGGIE HERE .... turn off all your alerts. You don't need 'em. 
• Set your timer on your phone for a period of work time (I like 40 minutes) and then move your mobile out of reach. For that period of time, do nothing but what you planned to do. It takes vigilance and can be quite the eye-opener as you catch yourself mindlessly opening up a new browser tab or somehow ending up on your Facebook feed. For me it was noticing I'd developed a bad habit of picking up my phone while waiting for a web page to load...and off I'd go. After your timer goes off, have a break, and rinse and repeat.

• If you have to go looking into your inbox for an email or search the web for something in particular, repeat in your head over and over what you are doing so you don't get hooked onto something else. 'Checking the due date of that report, checking the due date of the report' - that way when you glimpse 'Johnny tagged you in a photo' you are able to maintain your focus, do what you need to do and return to your task. I find this also works if you're walking in to a room to get something - repeat what it is you're doing in your head, so you don't suddenly find yourself looking around at the four walls wondering what the heck you came in here for! 
• Batch your work. Do similar activities at the same time. For example, allocate that 40 minutes to clearing your inbox, or paying bills, or scheduling your social media. By bringing similar work together, you bring a particular mind-set and focus, and are far less likely to wander down into Distractionville.   

PROCRASTINATION

Brendon Burchard says that procrastination is really just a lack of motivation. You put that task off because there is nothing inherently rewarding or satisfying waiting at the end when you finish it.  But the problem with procrastinating on something is that it begins to take on a life of its own where you think about doing it, or worry about not doing it, or start berating yourself for way longer than it might actually have taken you to get the dang thing done. 

• Become a frog eater. If you haven't read Brian Tracy's classic, 'Eat That Frog' then here is a great starting point for busting through procrastination. Train yourself to become someone that, by habit, can get the important work done early. 
• Find some kind of reward to imbed in the task -whether that is just imagining the joy at ticking it off, a couple of squares of your favourite choccie or a glass of wine (preferably not for the first task of the day). Generally just build in some motivation to compensate for a lack of a naturally -arising reward. 

PRIORITISE

What do you need to do, to help yourself stay focused and disciplined with the work that needs to happen? Often times our distraction and procrastination are the result of a lack of clarity. We just bumble along from task to task, email to email and phone call to phone call without any clear direction in terms of what is important and what we need to prioritise. Emails are the worst for this, to quote my man BB again - your inbox is just a convenient filing system for other people's priorities. 

• What do you need to do that is going to have the biggest impact moving forward? Yes we need to take care of the mundane and day to day tasks, but make sure you're remembering your big picture, your dream. If you don't schedule some time for this kind of thing, it will never happen.
• Take the time to set up your day EVERY MORNING. Actually prioritise what needs to happen, what would be nice to happen and also identify those things that really can wait, and shouldn't have your attention. Have a list of everything you need to get done and mark them in terms of priority. Don't fall prey to doing what's easy but meaningless over what might take more effort but will make a difference. 
• What you don't get done today, becomes your To Do tomorrow - and if you take the time to re-do your priorities at the close of a day, they're ready and waiting for you tomorrow!

MAINTAINING MOTIVATION

• We all need breaks. It's impossible to keep working productively all day, so clearly define when you are working, and when you are breaking. Work when you work, break when you break - make that distinction quite clear so that one doesn't seep into the other.
• Always have something to get freakin' excited about. Nothing saps motivation like the feeling of a constant nose to the grind. 
• And always remember ..... factor in some fun. Life is not just about long To Do lists - when was the last time you had a good belly laugh? Research shows that we are more productive when we are happy so make sure you are doing something every day to stay happy.​ 

​Want the daily priority planner I have used for over twenty years?  - CLICK HERE.  

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