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Abstract

">We often tend to procrastinate. One of the reasons you do that is because you’re trying to exceed your expectations. Your unrealistic expectations come from the high standards you set upon yourself. That’s why if you are a perfectionist, you are more likely to procrastinate.When you set up unrealistic goals, you feel reluctant to pursue them as the amount of work you aim to accomplish scares you. You feel overwhelmed, just thinking about it. What ends up happening is you pull yourself back and delay your project.Procrastination is at the core of perfectionism. It can hamper your productivity and successful completion of <a href="https://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/psychpedia/procrastination">tasks.</a>Solution: Unless your procrastination stems from a psychiatric condition, you can take steps to overcome it. Here are the three things you can do:<ul><li>Figure out what’s making you procrastinate in the first place</li></ul>It could be a lack of structure or absence of meaning in what you are doing. You may be confused about the process, in that case, you’ll need to obtain more knowledge and information to help you.The task may also seem boring to you — we all dread doing work we disklike — in that case, think of ways to make it more fun. Be creative with how you approach doing it.<ul><li>Take the smallest step towards the goal</li></ul>Okay- let’s say your goal is to write a 2000-word article for a client on a topic in which you have no particular interest. If that’s your goal, you can break down your workload into small and easy steps. Do the minimal amount you can do. Write your first 100 words and take a break.Proceed with your work a little step at a time. More often than not, when we procrastinate, it’s that very first step that’s so hard to take, but once you get over the hump, it’ll be much easier.<ul><li>Hold yourself accountable</li></ul>Often we need just a little push to get the process going. Maybe you can find someone who can hold you accountable and who can push you on.For example, my husband often dreads dealing with paperwork. When he holds me accountable for reminding him to complete work that has to do with papers, it helps him to stay on track.Find a person — a friend or a loved one who can check on your progress regularly.<h1 id="217e">Social media addiction</h1>Are you someone who can’t help but be distracted with social media notifications? We all do that to give ourselves a quick dopamine boost. Or maybe you are an email addict who constantly checks your email?If you spend too much time browsing pages on social media and waste your time chatting with your friends online, your productivity levels will plunge. Socia

Options

l media can be extremely addicting and distracting. The sooner you ditch that habit, the more productive you will be.Solution: Put a time limit on how much you allow yourself to spend on social media and stick to it. Set a time frame, say 30–60 mins per day, if you want to be flexible. That way you won’t feel socially deprived.If you’re bold enough and want to take a step further, you can even delete your social media apps on your phone, which will allow you to focus more on your work.Also, turning off your phone for a certain amount of time while you work is a good idea.<h1 id="af77">Not getting enough sleep</h1>This is one of the most common productivity killers. You can only function at your best and stay productive after a good night’s sleep. Lack of sleep can result in a decrease in energy and motivation to do work.Solution: Make sure you get at least 7 hours of sleep every night. Work on your sleep habits and adjust the amount of sleep you get accordingly.Also, be sure to go to bed at the same time every day, avoid technology before bed, stay away from caffeine in the evening, and don’t eat at least an hour before bedtime. If you can, try to exercise regularly, as it will increase your chances of getting a good night’s sleep.<h1 id="2798">Lack of planning</h1>Picture this scenario: You think about all the things you want to do. Suppose you want to do X, Y, and Z. You want to send a bunch of emails, you want to write a lot of content. And somewhere in the back of your mind, you’re also thinking of working on your blog. Your mind keeps doing in many different directions.You ask yourself: How do I get to do all of these things? Without adequate planning in place, you don’t have a clue where to start. There is no structure in place.Solution: I think the best planning starts the night before. To avoid frazzled and hectic mornings, plan and set up your tasks before you go to bed. Think of all the things you want to accomplish. Make a list and prioritize your tasks.Being a homeschooling mom and a freelance writer, I understand the importance of adequate planning. The way I like to do it is to create sticky notes on my computer with the tasks I plan to do the next day. It’s easy, efficient, and convenient.Every morning when I wake up, I turn on my computer, I look at my list, and everything is planned out and ready to go.Figure out what’s pushing you back from being productive. Identify the negative habits that impact your productivity and work on eliminating them. You probably won’t be able to do it all at once. So take it a step at a time. Assess and evaluate your progress regularly as you work things out. You can do it.</article></body>

Top 5 Habits That Kill Your Productivity

Eliminating these bad habits will help you stay productive

We all strive to be the most productive in our daily lives. However, some of our habits are detrimental and can sabotage our success. They can be productivity killers.

While some people nailed their productivity habits, others are still trying to figure out how they can improve and boost their productivity levels.

Here are the 5 most common productivity killers:

Chasing perfection

Are you someone who overthinks things, second-guesses how to do things, obsessing over minor flaws, doubting your decisions, regretting your actions? If it sounds like you — sorry to break it to you — you are a perfectionist.

When you are going after perfection, you’re trying to be perfect at every single task that you do.

When you’re chasing perfection, you’re setting your standards too high, which makes it hard to succeed at a task. Your self-defeating thoughts prevent you from taking the necessary actions. Because in your mind, whatever you do has to be perfect, and you wouldn’t settle for anything less.

Striving for perfection will not only stretch the amount of time it’ll take you to complete a task, but it’ll also make you feel drained upon finishing it.

Your perfectionist nature can also lead to your procrastination, and according to research, perfectionist people are more likely to procrastinate.

You have to let go of perfection. Perfection is the roadblock to your success.

“Perfect is the enemy of the good”

– Voltaire

Solution: Focus on the overall process of learning and don’t fixate on the outcome. Embrace mistakes as opportunities for growth, and don’t be afraid to fail. Accept the fact that there will be flaws in your work, and don’t beat yourself up for little mistakes you make.

Also, avoid comparing yourself to others. Do not bring yourself down just because others are more successful than you are. Use the accomplishments of people you admire to inspire you to work hard. Put your best effort into what you do, and be happy about it.

Procrastination

We often tend to procrastinate. One of the reasons you do that is because you’re trying to exceed your expectations. Your unrealistic expectations come from the high standards you set upon yourself. That’s why if you are a perfectionist, you are more likely to procrastinate.

When you set up unrealistic goals, you feel reluctant to pursue them as the amount of work you aim to accomplish scares you. You feel overwhelmed, just thinking about it. What ends up happening is you pull yourself back and delay your project.

Procrastination is at the core of perfectionism. It can hamper your productivity and successful completion of tasks.

Solution: Unless your procrastination stems from a psychiatric condition, you can take steps to overcome it. Here are the three things you can do:

Figure out what’s making you procrastinate in the first place

It could be a lack of structure or absence of meaning in what you are doing. You may be confused about the process, in that case, you’ll need to obtain more knowledge and information to help you.

The task may also seem boring to you — we all dread doing work we disklike — in that case, think of ways to make it more fun. Be creative with how you approach doing it.

Take the smallest step towards the goal

Okay- let’s say your goal is to write a 2000-word article for a client on a topic in which you have no particular interest. If that’s your goal, you can break down your workload into small and easy steps. Do the minimal amount you can do. Write your first 100 words and take a break.

Proceed with your work a little step at a time. More often than not, when we procrastinate, it’s that very first step that’s so hard to take, but once you get over the hump, it’ll be much easier.

Hold yourself accountable

Often we need just a little push to get the process going. Maybe you can find someone who can hold you accountable and who can push you on.

For example, my husband often dreads dealing with paperwork. When he holds me accountable for reminding him to complete work that has to do with papers, it helps him to stay on track.

Find a person — a friend or a loved one who can check on your progress regularly.

Social media addiction

Are you someone who can’t help but be distracted with social media notifications? We all do that to give ourselves a quick dopamine boost. Or maybe you are an email addict who constantly checks your email?

If you spend too much time browsing pages on social media and waste your time chatting with your friends online, your productivity levels will plunge. Social media can be extremely addicting and distracting. The sooner you ditch that habit, the more productive you will be.

Solution: Put a time limit on how much you allow yourself to spend on social media and stick to it. Set a time frame, say 30–60 mins per day, if you want to be flexible. That way you won’t feel socially deprived.

If you’re bold enough and want to take a step further, you can even delete your social media apps on your phone, which will allow you to focus more on your work.

Also, turning off your phone for a certain amount of time while you work is a good idea.

Not getting enough sleep

This is one of the most common productivity killers. You can only function at your best and stay productive after a good night’s sleep. Lack of sleep can result in a decrease in energy and motivation to do work.

Solution: Make sure you get at least 7 hours of sleep every night. Work on your sleep habits and adjust the amount of sleep you get accordingly.

Also, be sure to go to bed at the same time every day, avoid technology before bed, stay away from caffeine in the evening, and don’t eat at least an hour before bedtime. If you can, try to exercise regularly, as it will increase your chances of getting a good night’s sleep.

Lack of planning

Picture this scenario: You think about all the things you want to do. Suppose you want to do X, Y, and Z. You want to send a bunch of emails, you want to write a lot of content. And somewhere in the back of your mind, you’re also thinking of working on your blog. Your mind keeps doing in many different directions.

You ask yourself: How do I get to do all of these things? Without adequate planning in place, you don’t have a clue where to start. There is no structure in place.

Solution: I think the best planning starts the night before. To avoid frazzled and hectic mornings, plan and set up your tasks before you go to bed. Think of all the things you want to accomplish. Make a list and prioritize your tasks.

Being a homeschooling mom and a freelance writer, I understand the importance of adequate planning. The way I like to do it is to create sticky notes on my computer with the tasks I plan to do the next day. It’s easy, efficient, and convenient.

Every morning when I wake up, I turn on my computer, I look at my list, and everything is planned out and ready to go.

Figure out what’s pushing you back from being productive. Identify the negative habits that impact your productivity and work on eliminating them. You probably won’t be able to do it all at once. So take it a step at a time. Assess and evaluate your progress regularly as you work things out. You can do it.