Procrastination …
Read this now … or tomorrow … or next week … or …
No! Read this now.
When I sat down to write this column on procrastination, my first inclination was to begin with a few cornball one-liners about how I’d been avoiding the chore up until the last minute. Well, actually, that’s true, I did put it off, but I’ll spare you the warmed-over witticisms and get right to the point: If you are a business traveler who puts off making travel arrangements or delays making appointments, then you are wasting time, wasting money and squandering business opportunities. “Moreover,” says Dr. Gene Griessman, author of Time Tactics of Very Successful People, “procrastination can increase the stress that already accompanies business travel.”
So why do you put things off? Maybe it’s because you don’t care if you get the most convenient flights, or the nicest rooms or the best meeting times. Or maybe you see making last-minute travel arrangements as a tactic to score special deals.
Maybe. But not likely. Let’s face it, procrastination generally lies deeper in most people’s psyches.
Most people put off doing tasks because of anxiety. The anxiety can come from your own personality or from feelings generated by the task at hand. It can manifest itself in emotions ranging from defiance (for example, the executive who feels unfairly pressured by her boss to attend an out-of-town meeting) to fear — all kinds of fear: fear of commitment, fear of failure, even fear of success.
“Adding to this anxiety is the fact that executives [i.e., you] often underestimate the time required to complete certain tasks,” says Dr. Signe Dayhoff, president of Effectiveness-Plus, a coaching program for people with anxieties. The result is a buildup of anxiety that leads not just to procrastination, but to inaction.
At one time or another you probably have been the victim of an anxiety that has inhibited you from doing what you knew needed to be done. So how can you shake off fits of temporary paralysis?
First, look around you. We all procrastinate at times. (Heck, if only a few people were procrastinators, my editor wouldn’t have suggested this topic for this column.) Common problems have common solutions, and there is probably at least one that will work for you.
Here, then, are five things you can do to get off the dime. Any more than five and I know you’ll put off reading them — so here goes.
* Simplify. The absolutely most effective strategy is to break up large, daunting tasks into smaller, doable ones. For instance, instead of trying to book all flights, all hotels and all rental cars for an extended multi-city trip, break the chore into smaller tasks, each one of which should take about 10-15 minutes, 30 minutes tops.
* Prioritize. It is amazing how you never quite get to that distasteful task at the bottom of your “to do” list. So, put it at the top of your list. Once you get past it, you will feel like a hero, and every other task will seem more pleasant. Just do it.
* Advertise. Telling others of your plan to accomplish your task introduces an element of social pressure. It’s good motivation, and you get support and recognition, too.
* Be happy with “good enough.” Always trying to get the best possible deal? Instead, try to get the best possible deal at the moment. Even if you were to spend months chasing the “best” deal, I can almost guarantee that another person on your flight, another guest in your hotel and another driver at the rental car counter is getting a better deal than you are. Conversely, you’re probably getting a better deal than someone else, too.
* Reward. Finally, reward yourself for accomplishing each task — something small: a drink at the water cooler, a quick download of another iTune, a stroll around the block. This is especially important for procrastinators, who may miss the sweet indolence of the do-nothing life. In time, however, the reduction in stress and anxiety will be its own reward.
Speaking of rewards, I’m going to have a beer.