It begins intentionally with, “… I can sleep a little more and start working on ‘it ‘at 10…” and then to a habit of, “…It worked yesterday at 10 so there is no reason I’m waking at 7 today. I will work it at 10…”

At one point or the other, we are all faced with a decision which is many a time too enticing to overcome; the bad decision of carrying forward what you are supposed to be doing at the moment for a later time.

WHAT IS PROCRASTINATION?
A thief of time. Webster Defines Procrastination is putting off something that should be done intentionally or habitually.

From my experience and probably your experience I presume, a bit of the psychology depicts that it is in the human nature to want a little more pleasure and a little less Pressure. It is also obvious that it’s easier to do a simple task, or find more pleasure in doing something that you love. For instance, waking up early to get something done is not something that you would want to celebrate about. It takes sacrifice.

At one point or the other, almost every religious leader, mentor, parent, speaker and now I too, will put in from a few words to a whole session on procrastination and if you attend such meetings or sermons often, you probably have heard it so many times that it becomes a cliche. That already shows you that it’s a recurrent problem which then needs a frequent revisiting.

If you relentlessly follow the four simple ideas am about to present for long enough to make them habitual, they are all you need to overcome it. Having become familiar with the problem already, it’s the absolute solution to it that most people seek. So, how do we stop procrastination?A professor in a lecture I was attending did point out once that Procrastination is simply ‘Postponing Pain’. Well, if something is painful to do right now, what makes you think it will be less painful to do tomorrow? GET IT DONE!

HOW TO STOP PROCRASTINATION.
I present to you a quick fix, and who doesn’t love a quick fix in the 21st century? And again, I wouldn’t want you to postpone reading this either.
Most to all management ideas regarding procrastination revolve around these four things;

1. HAVE A TO DO LIST.
I would most recommend a sticky note or rather something tangible. The Importance of the sticky note is that one is able to list the things that require their attention in the order of urgency, which could be easier to complete by arrangement starting with the hardest to the simplest, or by chunking them based on the amount of time you have. Some People may use virtual sticky notes on their phones and laptops but they have no idea how great it feels having to tick or to cross out a task completed. It is really gratifying.

2. FIND SOMETHING GOOD IN EVERYTHING YOU DO.
This is basically to avoid catastrophizing, which is one of the biggest reasons which people procrastinate. It could be because the task is boring, or even painful. When you find something good in it, however, a positive feeling develops and it creates an ease in doing the task because you eventually find the task worth doing.

3. LIVE ONE MOMENT AT A TIME.
The thought of having a lot of time, or rather banking on the next moment, is a big contributor to procrastination. Living one moment at a time means seizing every opportunity you got knowing that we do not have a guaranteed tomorrow in terms of life or even health. Knowing that every day is a gift, and every new moment an opportunity to make the most out of it.

4. REWARD YOURSELF.
After completing a whole to do list, whats better than getting you a reward?

The steps I have given will help you overcome procrastination, save time and hence become a productive individual at the end of the day.