To tell you the truth, I also came out of this situation. Earlier, I was also stuck in this a lot, and this isn’t even a very old story. I wanted to complete my master’s degree from Germany. It was my biggest dream to learn the German language and do my master’s from Germany. But for that, I first had to learn German. I didn’t understand where exactly I should learn it from. I was trying here and there, but it felt tough. Because of that, I kept delaying it. The plan was very simple, but because of the confusion, I was facing many problems, and I couldn’t understand what exactly I was doing wrong. Then I realized where I was making mistakes, and after that, I started working on them. Then I joined classes and started focusing on it daily. So that’s the thing—the problem isn’t very big. We just have to find it out and understand what the main issue is. So let me explain it in detail. What exactly is procrastination?
Procrastinate Means: If you keep delaying your work again and again without any strong reason, then it is called procrastination.
Like today you had some work or an assignment to do, but instead you went out somewhere, or started watching a movie or web series. And the best example is when your exams are next week, and you keep thinking, “I’ll study from tomorrow, I’ll do it tomorrow.” While saying “tomorrow” again and again, the whole week passes. That is procrastination.
It means you had one whole week, but you did everything except preparing for the exam, which was the most important thing.
Is the same thing happening with you too?
Delaying work is not a sign of laziness or being a lazy person. In fact, many hardworking and intelligent people also do this. Procrastination is a problem almost everyone has. Everyone does it.
But as soon as they understand why they are delaying the work, changing that habit becomes much easier because now they understand the main problem.
First of all, it is more important to understand why we are delaying the work that is most important. The reason is not always the work itself. Sometimes emotions are also connected to it, or maybe something else.
Maybe these could be some reasons:
1) Fear of failure:
I tried very hard and gave my best, but what if I still couldn’t do it and failed? Because of this fear, people don’t even start. They take a lot of time.
2) Fear of doing it imperfectly:
We always think, “What if this work isn’t done perfectly? What will people think?” We want to do everything perfectly, and many people are afraid because of this.
3) Feeling overwhelmed:
This is the biggest reason for most people. Maybe this is the main problem. People think the work is too big. In their mind, it starts looking huge and difficult, so they get scared just by thinking about it. Like completing a project, making a 100-page assignment, or preparing for exams. But in reality, it isn’t like that.
4) Don’t know where to start:
Many times people simply don’t know where to start or how they should start.
5) Brain Avoids discomfort:
Our mind always wants to avoid things that are very difficult or boring. That’s why it chooses easier things.
For example: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, Games.
Good News: When you stop calling yourself lazy and understand the real reason why you are avoiding that work, then it becomes much easier.
1. Break the task into smaller steps:
This is one of the biggest reasons—that the work feels too big. Big tasks always feel scary. Like writing an entire report. That’s the wrong way to think. Instead, you can divide it into many parts, like first preparing the title, then writing the introduction, then writing the first paragraph.
Why it works?
Because your brain won’t get scared after seeing a huge task. It knows what to do first, so your mind will think one step at a time, and you can complete everything step by step. Like if you have to prepare for exams, first memorize the important and slightly difficult questions. Later, when you get bored or your mind starts feeling overwhelmed, then study the easy ones. This way you’ll complete everything. If you think about doing everything together, it will feel too big. I also divide all my work like this, and it becomes much easier for me because of this.
For example, as I told you, I am learning the German language. So what do I do? As soon as I wake up in the morning, I first attend classes for one hour. Then I have breakfast and finish my other work. Whenever I get time, I practice, and at night I do a complete revision. This way I remember everything, and my work also gets completed. If I tried to do everything together during the day, then maybe I wouldn’t be able to do it properly, and maybe I would never have learned it. So use this rule.
2. Use the Two Minute Rule:
If any work feels very difficult, then promise yourself to do it for just 2 minutes. It will become easier for you. Don’t think, “Today I have to read the whole book.” Instead, decide, “Today I’ll study for only 2 minutes.” “Today I’ll only read one topic,” or “I’ll only read one chapter.” This will make your work much easier. But if you think you have to read the whole book, your brain will feel overloaded and start avoiding it.
3. Remove Distractions:
Before starting your work, remove the things that can distract your mind. Like if you’re ready to study one chapter, then at that time turn off your phone notifications and social media. It will make things much easier for you. You can complete that chapter much faster. But if your phone is on and you receive a notification and open it, then you’ll see other things too, and you’ll waste a lot of time there. You won’t even realize how your time passed, and you won’t finish your work either.
These days, while scrolling reels, we don’t even realize how much time passes. The same thing used to happen to me too. While studying, I would open Instagram just to relax my mind a little. Then I would see something and keep scrolling. I never realized when 2–3 hours had passed.
4. Set Deadlines:
Set a deadline. If there is no fixed deadline, then you’ll always keep postponing that work. The most important thing is to fix a date and time, like “I’ll do this work on Saturday or Sunday,” or “I’ll complete it by next Sunday,” and decide at what time every day you’ll work on it according to your schedule. This will help you finish your work much faster and properly.
To be honest, my problem was confusion and boredom. You know, we all know making a plan is very easy, but working on it is very difficult in the beginning. The same thing used to happen with me. I used to make plans, but I couldn’t work on them. Then I started setting proper deadlines like this, and I kept thinking about finishing that work within that time.
5. Identify what you’re actually avoiding:
Ask yourself what exactly is the problem because of which you are avoiding and delaying that work. Once you understand it, everything becomes much easier. Find out whether it’s difficult, boring, not important, or you simply don’t know where to start. Once you understand this, it becomes much easier.
I also had this problem a lot. Sometimes I was confused, sometimes it felt boring, and sometimes I didn’t know where to start. Then I worked on finding out what the real problem was. After that I fixed it, and my work became much easier.
6. Reward Yourself:
After completing your work, give yourself a reward. Reward yourself for every small thing and every bit of progress. One chapter completed—one coffee. One task completed—10 minutes of Instagram scrolling. Whole work completed—one episode of your favorite web series.
This will motivate you, and you’ll stay excited because you’ll know you’ll get something after completing the work. It will increase your dopamine and motivate you to work.
7. Pomodoro Technique:
This technique can help you a lot in your work. Work for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break, then work for another 25 minutes. Twenty-five minutes doesn’t sound too long, so your brain accepts it easily and doesn’t feel much pressure. This will increase your focus, reduce tiredness, and improve your productivity.
Final Thoughts:
Procrastination is not a flaw in your personality. It’s just a sign that the work feels difficult, or you don’t understand it, or you’re scared, or it feels too big. It helps you find that out.
Start small. Don’t wait to become perfect. Remove the things that are stopping you from working, no matter what they are. Give yourself permission that you don’t need to be perfect. Starting is more important than being perfect. Your goal shouldn’t be that you’ll never procrastinate in life. Instead, your goal should be to understand the real reason why you’re delaying your work and then work on that reason.
So start today itself. Don’t wait for tomorrow because tomorrow never comes and never will. This is how all your time will pass. So don’t wait to become perfect. Start right now, however you can.
Which of these 7 methods did you find the most helpful? Tell me in the comments—I genuinely want to know.