How To Trick Your Brain to Stop Procrastinating

Summary

• Procrastination is not a sign that something is wrong with you or the task; it's a lack of self-management skills.
• Anxiety is a primary reason for procrastination. Assess if completing a task now will make your future easier. Chunk tasks to reduce anxiety.
• To overcome anxiety about a task, develop a framework that breaks the task into small steps that you can accomplish over time.
• Give yourself plenty of buffer time for tasks that provoke anxiety to allow for changes and unexpected events.
• Some people procrastinate due to a rebellious nature against authority. Acknowledge this tendency and act in your own interest regardless.
• Ask yourself if avoiding a task helps or hinders achieving your goals, despite aversion to authority.
• Boredom is a form of procrastination when a task is not stimulating. Seek tasks aligned with long-term goals despite short-term mundanity.
• To combat boredom, create shorter feedback loops for intermittent reinforcement and recruit friends or a spouse for support.
• Introduce external reinforcements such as praise or rewards to maintain engagement in less exciting, yet important tasks.
• When deciding between multiple options, list the upsides and downsides—and what would happen if the worst-case scenario came true.
• Taking action, regardless of whether it's the perfect choice, will often lead to a solution or progress more quickly than inaction.
• If your procrastination stems from perfectionism or fear of failure, change your focus from past failures to current actions.
• Set a reward for yourself after completing a challenging task, such as going for a walk with your dog, to create an incentive to finish it.
• Theme your days to improve productivity and establish clear communication with your team about when and how you're available.
• Teaching your team how to manage your time and their requests can help preserve your themed days and overall efficiency.
• View your time as your most important resource and protect it by training others in how to engage with you effectively.
• Instead of continuing to procrastinate after consuming content on procrastination, take immediate action on the task you've been avoiding.

Video

How To Take Action

I would suggest starting with breaking down big, scary tasks into smaller steps. Think about something big you've been avoiding and write out each step to make it doable. For example, if you're scared of making a business presentation, outline it first, then create the intro, and so on.

Give yourself "buffer time" for tasks that make you anxious. If you need to do something that causes stress, plan to finish it way before the due date. This way, if something goes wrong, you have extra time to fix it.

Remember to act in your own interest, even if you don't like being told what to do. If you feel rebellious against authority, ask yourself, "Does avoiding this task help me reach my goals?" Do what's best for you, no matter the source of the instruction.

To deal with boredom, find ways to make routine tasks more exciting. You could set quicker goals or work with friends or family. For example, if doing paperwork is boring, reward yourself after each section you complete. If your spouse encourages you after you work on your project, you'll feel better about it.

When you have too many options, list the pros and cons for each choice. Think about if you'd be okay if the worst happens. Taking action, even if it's not perfect, will help you learn and grow faster than doing nothing.

If you're avoiding something because you want it to be perfect or fear failing, focus on the action you can take right now. Set a nice reward after you finish a hard task. For example, go for a walk with your dog after you've completed something challenging.

Theme your days to stay productive. Let people know how to approach you with their needs. Teach them to respect your themed days. Your time is super valuable, so show others how to work with you effectively.

Finally, stop putting off tasks after learning about procrastination. Choose one thing you've been avoiding and start it right now. Small, steady steps can lead to big improvements in your business and personal growth.

Quotes

"Getting yourself to do something when you don't want to do it is a skill in itself"

– Leila Hormozi

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"The reason that you procrastinate is because you lack skill, not because there's something wrong with you"

– Leila Hormozi

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"Anxiety is almost 200% of the reason I don't do things"

– Leila Hormozi

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"Procrastination isn't any practical problem, it is an emotional problem"

– Leila Hormozi

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"You can control how you behave"

– Leila Hormozi