Procrastinating: Web Designer’s Guide On How To Stop
We’ve all done it. Sometimes you just can’t make yourself do anything, and instead of studying, applying for jobs, or finishing your assignment, you find more and more ways of ignoring your task. Procrastinating is very human, and it’s a real problem for some. As web developers, we have to do a lot of work fast, and we often have to self-organize. But how do we do it? Let’s break it down.
Procrastinating: where it all begins
By our nature, we ignore the tasks we technically don’t have to do if they sound unpleasant or burdensome. No matter what it is, if there’s no immediate reason to do it, we will find a way to ignore it. That is the main reason for missed deadlines: those deadlines seem unimportant until it’s too late. And when time is almost up, you can be sure you’ll find that missing motivation. And while you might be able to pull it off and get your work done before the deadline, you’ll have lost tons of energy, nerves, and sleep.
The schedule is a procrastination killer
Scheduling sounds tedious and unnecessary for a pro like you, but it’s the best way to stop the hurtful trend of doing everything at the last minute. “I’ll do it later” won’t work if you know you HAVE to do it NOW because the schedule states so. If you work from home, have a big assignment, or anything else, the schedule will help you stay on target. By the way, it’s great for work and exercising too. Break your big task into bits and do them one by one. That’ll stop you from overworking.
Read also: Web Developers On How To Stay Productive When Working From Home
Be honest with yourself
Most of the time, we don’t do things we find unimportant. We don’t try hard because the end result is not interesting to us. The process of achieving is not fun and not worth your while — at least, that’s how our brain works. And even if you set up a schedule, it won’t work until you stop lying to yourself. Procrastination is an endless game of “how can I get away with it,” which is the main reason why you can’t get anything done. Before working, you have to have an honest think about why you’re doing things in the first place. Do you want to study? Do you want to exercise? And if your answer is “yes,” do you honestly believe it? Instead of finding reasons to do the bare minimum, challenge yourself. Try to do more, instead of less. Gamify that task and find that missing enthusiasm.
Negative emotions create negative associations
If you have a daunting task ahead, the very thought of starting working will make you nervous and apprehensive. As a result, you start looking for a way out, and the easiest way to stop stressing out is not even to start the dreaded journey. That’s how you end up ignoring your work until it’s too late. It’s harmful behavior.
If you associate your work with negative emotions, you’ll create this connection in your head that will make you stressed whenever you try to sit down to do something. And nothing will change until you stop doing that and start thinking about the end result. Think positive (I know, very fresh idea) — not about the massive amount of work ahead, but about how you already started achieving something. Think about the result, about how little by little you’re succeeding. Positive minds accomplish their tasks in half the time.