Finding the bright side of goals

In this blogpost, you will:

• Gain insight into procrastination.

• Learn how to minimize procrastination by looking at the value of tasks.

This week we start with a new series by looking at the theme of Procrastination and more importantly, how to overcome or minimize procrastination.

Procrastination can be defined as the voluntary act of delaying completing tasks or goals. These continual delays for people who procrastinate may lead to harmful effects in their relationships, careers, and emotional and mental health. According to a study done by Day, Mensink, & O'Sullivan, procrastination has been reported by 50% of college students that took part in the study. The interesting thing about procrastination is that while it is the voluntary choice of avoiding tasks or goals for seemingly more pleasurable and comforting practices like watching TV or engaging in hobbies, people have reported to feel emotions of shame and guilt during these activities. These activities are not wrong or harmful on their own but because it done because tasks are being avoided it becomes toxic.

Over the next couple of weeks, we will explore and discuss practical ways of overcoming and minimizing the effects of procrastination in our daily lives. The first aspect that we will look at is what I call finding the bright side of goals. Many who have experienced procrastination have reported that while they understand the seriousness of tasks, they struggle to find the relevant motivation to get going. With this in mind, we will look to an exercise that is designed to unlock motivation to engage with tasks and goals.

While there are many reasons for procrastination, like fear, complexity, and time, one of the biggest challenges is the emotional state of the person and their motivation to engage in activities that are sometimes menial or daunting. To overcome this paralyzing effect, we want to find the ultimate result or effect that a task will have on the bigger goal. As an example, when I complete this blogpost, it will be read by people who may experience breakthrough in their lives and careers, which may result in happier and fulfilled people. When I think about the highest value of each task in relation to the outcome my motivation shoots up because I am more aware of the ultimate result. This exercise can be done with anything that triggers thoughts of procrastination. The key is to acknowledge that you are not a victim of procrastination but rather someone that completes all you set out to do. Procrastination does not have any power over you.

Coach U

The exercise this week is to find the bright side of goals.

Connect the accomplished task to the end result. Ask yourself what does this task give me? Keep asking until you find the highest value of a certain task. Keep that value in mind as you attempt your goals.

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