You may be procrastinating right now by reading this.
You may be wondering why is it painful to get to work? You were so excited to start that project but now you feel literally pain to sit down and do the work.
If you are confused on why you keep procrastinating let me shine some light into you.
We sometimes think that taking action will be more painful than not taking action.
It feels really comfortable watching Friends, to play video games, or even cleaning; whatever we find something which is more comfortable than work.
The need to avoid pain is a defence mechanism because it wants to protect the body. It triggers the “fight or flight response” when your brain thinks you are in danger, even when it isn’t.
Not long ago, I used to get up and walk away from the computer whenever the work I was doing turned more difficult than I expected. It was automatic.
With the help of mindfulness and meditation, after years of practice, I was able to identify the instant aversion to getting to work. When I felt the sensation of running away I forced myself to continue a bit more, like lifting weights at the gym: One more! One more!
Focus on the pleasure
Realizing that Pain is a concept to something I’ve associated in the past, I started focusing on the pleasures of getting stuff done, helping me relabel that association with something positive.
Instead of thinking:
- This is going to take forever to finish.
- This is not going to be good enough.
- I hate doing this task.
- I don’t feel motivated.
I channel my focus into:
- The sooner I start the sooner I finish.
- I don’t need to complete the whole project today.
- Progress, not perfection.
- How can I make this task more joyful?
- Motivation will come after I start.
When I do that, I stand in a place of power and control over my emotions.
“You are not at the mercy of mythical emotion circuits buried deep inside some ancient part of your brain. You have more control over your emotions than you think.” – Tiago Forte, How emotions are made.
What will it cost you if you don’t take action?
Another anti-procrastination trick is finding out the cost for not doing the work:
If I don’t do this now:
- My clients will fire me.
- I won’t look professional.
- I will feel ashamed.
- I won’t have anything to show for.
If I do this now:
- I will earn more money.
- I will be sought after.
- I will feel accomplished.
- I will have a kick-ass portfolio.
I learned to use the pain to get to work, instead of having the pain use me.
“I learned to use the pain to get to work, instead of having the pain use me.” 🙏🏽