Defeat Procrastination by Using Small Wins to Create Momentum
Procrastination is sometimes necessary , but when you really need to do something, sometimes all you need to do is start . If you are struggling, focus on something small. Even an email response, a ready-made short report, or another small win is all it takes to build some momentum for big challenges.
I can vouch for this myself – sometimes on days when I really just don’t have to do something, solving these small (but still necessary) things helps me stay motivated and gives me enough momentum to move on to a bigger task. on my plate as soon as I finish the change. In many cases, it is the prospect of doing such important things that makes me procrastinate in the first place, while responding to a few emails or planning a few next steps has a much lower barrier to entry (or activation energy , so to speak.)
On the Glassdoor blog, Alexandra Levit explains that these small wins can go a long way, and she uses the “less than 10 minutes” rule – which we discussed earlier – to help her get started:
“If a task ends up in your queue and can be completed in less than 10 minutes, take care of it right away. Small jobs are the most vulnerable to being immersed in the workflow. Of course, the Less than 10 Minutes Rule is only effective if you have some wiggle room in your schedule. If you have multiple appointments or multiple assignments that require hard work every day, you simply won’t have time for anything else. Thus, you should proceed from the fact that you are spending at least an hour a day on these small tasks and, accordingly, the budget. In my mailbox, as soon as the problem is solved, the corresponding messages are deleted and placed in the appropriate folder. Thanks to the “Less than 10 minutes” rule, my mailbox is almost always empty. I don’t lose anything to the mess, I’m not overwhelmed by everything I need to do, and my level of responsiveness is unmatched. ”
This is good advice and a good way to stay motivated or break out of a procrastination bout. Follow the link below for more tips.
Nine Ways to Successfully Combat Procrastination | Glassdoor Blog