How to stop putting things off and start getting stuff done (feature image source: studyguides)
In my last blog, I wrote about The Procrastination Equation by Dr. Piers Steel who is creator of one of the best motivation and procrastination books – an equation that is able to explain every scientific finding on procrastination ever.
The equation teaches us:
“What can be done at any time is often done at no time.”
The next question is very important with which I ended my part – I of the blog, which is:
How to beat Procrastination?
Simple Maths, In this equation
Motivation = (Expectancy x Value) / (Impulsiveness x Delay)
Increase the numerator and decrease the denominator to have more control, i.e
- Increase your expectancy of Success.
- Increase the task’s value(make it more pleasant and rewarding).
- Decrease your impulsiveness.
Research shows that there are several useful methods to achieve each of these, though you may think these are out of your control
Let’s see how to achieve it..
Increase your expectancy of Success.
I agree, it is same as telling someone “Be Positive”, But How?
Researchers have identified, three major techniques for increasing optimism:
- Success Spirals – Making use of “Success Spirals” means achieving one challenging goals after another, it gives you confidence in your ability to succeed. So give yourself a series of meaningful, challenging but achievable goals, and then achieve them. You can acquire a skill, go for adventure like rafting, camping; volunteer for more social or professional work, give a level to your hobbies etc. When you achieve goals one after another, your brain will reward you with increased expectancy for success and finally a better ability to beat procrastination
- Vicarious Victory – Pessimism and optimism both are contagious. So try to be a part of community which fosters positivity, watch inspirational movies, read inspirational biographies, listen to motivational speakers and so on
- Mental Contrasting – While most of us do creative visualization of what we want to achieve: Money, Car, House, High paying Job etc.Research shows that it may drain our motivation unless we do “Mental Contrasting” after visualizing what you want to achieve with where you are now with a rusty car, rented house etc. This will help you to overcome obstacle to achieve your dreams and jumpstarts planning and effort towards it.
Increase the task’s value (make it more pleasant and rewarding)
If we don’t like gardening, how can we water the plant? it doesn’t have much value to us. Right?
However, study shows that, Value is to some degree constructed and relative. Psychophysics actually, advice for how we can inject value into necessary tasks
- Flow – it’s all about making a boring job more difficult, to the point that matches your current level of skill and there you achieve your “flow” just like how Myrtle Young made her boring job at potato chip factory more interesting and challenging by looking for potato chips that resembled celebrities and pulling them off the conveyor belt.
- Meaning – Connect the task to something you care about for its own sake, as a chain: Read the subject in your curriculum (you don’t like) to clear the exam and get a job, buy a house for your loved ones. Once you break the chain, it makes a task meaningless, so you do it through a chain.
- Energy – It’s simple, Low energy make a task harder. So take it up when you are mot alert, may be in day time or afternoon or evening, you know your rhythm. Don’t forget to sleep well, and exercise well!!
- Rewards – It’s simple, pat your back, reward yourself for completing a task. Treat yourself with special coffee after you achieve it.
- Passion – The value of task increase itself, when you do what you love. It’s the most powerful way to achieve your goals
Decrease your impulsiveness.
“The Achilles Heel of procrastination turns out to be impulsiveness; that is, living impatiently in the moment and wanting it all now.”
It is one of the biggest factor in procrastination
Here are two solid method’s to deal with it:
- Commit Now
- “Throw away the key” or close off tempting alternatives
- Make failure really painful, set aside money you will lose if you don’t meet your goals and ensure you have an outside reference to decide whether you met your goal or not. Set things up so that your money goes to an organization you hate, if you fail and your chosen referee will post the details of it on Facebook if you don’t meet your goal.
- Set Goals – You are smart so set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-Anchored) goals, but remember Attainable is Redundant with Realistic, and Specific is Redundant with Measurable and Time-Anchored. However, goals should be challenging, meaningful and output focused, in X time, product is Y.
Conclusion:
To beat procrastination, you need to be increase your motivation to do each task on which you are tempted to procrastinate. To do that, you can (1) optimize your optimism for success on the task,(2) make the task more pleasant, and (3) take steps to overcome your impulsiveness. And to do each of those things, use the specific methods explained above (Set goals, pre-commit, make use of success spirals, etc.)
About Author: Dr. Piers Steel is one of the world’s leading researchers and speakers on the science of motivation and procrastination. Winner of the Killam Emerging Research Leader award, he is considered the top new professor at the University of Calgary, where he teaches human resources and organizational dynamics at the Haskayne School of Business. He has been studying procrastination and its impact for more than ten years—and spent the decades before that as a procrastinator himself. Dr. Steel’s research has been reported thousands of times around the world, ranging from Psychology Today and New Scientist to Good Housekeeping and The New Yorker. He lives in Calgary, Alberta, with his wife and two sons.
“The Procrastination Equation will teach you how to bust the excuses that are preventing you from doing your best work and living your best life….So don’t put it off any longer
—Daniel H. Pink