Essay on "20 Ways To Stop Procrastinating" - By Tam Tam

"Never put off until tomorrow what can be done today." - Thomas Jefferson

Procrastination is one of the least awesome things that exists. Time stolen while procrastinating is not actually enjoyable time, but only guilt-ridden and dirty. No-one does anything interesting or important during this time. I, for example, smoke a lot of cigarettes, doodle in my notebook and have small panic attacks. Other people may pair up socks, move objects from one place in the house to the other or even just simply sit and stare into space with a frown.

In this essay, I am going to cover twenty ways in which we can eliminate procrastination from our lives. Some techniques may be physical, while others mental. It is not only a mental attitude that can drive us to complete tasks without hesitation, but also habit. There are many situations and professions where there may be more temptation to procrastinate rather than get on with a task. Being self-employed, for one, means that there is no boss standing over you and making sure that you get your days tasks done. It's very easy to say, "Well, today I've checked all my emails and responded to them already... and I know I have to fill out my tax returns but it's hard to do that without a sharp pencil so I'll sharpen all of them because I may as well - while I'm sharpening one anyway..." As you can see, procrastination logic leaves a lot to be desired, while also being surprisingly justifiable. Hopefully, with these techniques we can make this state of mind seem so totally unnecessary that we can cut all procrastination from our lives.


Technique One: Lack of Thought

This technique is fairly simple and involves… just doing it. Not thinking about the task ahead, nor considering what may need to be done but simply taking yourself to the place where the task needs to be accomplished and doing it before the will to sit down and read the instruction manual for Crysis 2 becomes overwhelming. This usually works better with physical tasks rather than mental suck as clearing out the garage, mowing the garden or tidying up.


Technique Two: Set Yourself Small Breaks – that you then forget about.

By having small breaks during your task, you force yourself to begin at once. You’ll most likely find that when your break time approaches, you’ll feel little need for one now that you’ve begun the task. Remember: getting up and getting started is the hardest part. Once you’ve jumped in, it’s usually not as bad as you imagined it would be!


Technique Three: I’m procrastinating.

My techniques are too good. I have things to be getting on with…