How to Make Yourself Work When You Just Don’t Want To

How to Make Yourself Work When You Just Don’t Want To

By Heidi Grant

There’s that project you’ve left on the backburner(ˈbakˌbərnər) – the one with the deadline that’s growing uncomfortably near. And there’s the client whose phone call you really should return – the one that does nothing but complain and eat up your valuable time. Wait, weren’t you going to try to go to the gym(jim) more often this year?

Can you imagine how much less guilt(gilt), stress, and frustration(frəˈstrāSHən) you would feel if you could somehow just make yourself do the things you don’t want to do when you are actually supposed to do them? Not to mention how much happier and more effective you would be?

The good news (and its very good news) is that you can get better about not putting things off, if you use the right strategy. Figuring out which strategy to use depends on why you are procrastinating in the first place:

Reason #1 You are putting something off because you are afraid(əˈfrād) you will screw(skro͞o) it up.

Solution: Adopt(əˈdäpt) a “prevention(prəˈven(t)SH(ə)n) focus.”

There are two ways to look at any task. You can do something because you see it as a way to end up better off than you are now – as an achievement or accomplishment. As in, if I complete this project successfully I will impress my boss, or if I work out regularly(ˈreɡyələrlē) I will look amazing. Psychologists(sīˈkäləjəst) call this a promotion(prəˈmōSHən) focus – and research shows that when you have one, you are motivated(ˈmōdəˌvāt) by the thought of making gains(gān), and work best when you feel eager(ˈēgər) and optimistic(ˌäptəˈmistik). Sounds good, doesn’t it? Well, if you are afraid you will screw up on the task in question, this is not the focus for you. Anxiety and doubt(dout) undermine promotion motivation, leaving you less likely to take any action at all.

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https://hbr.org/2014/02/how-to-make-yourself-work-when-you-just-dont-want-to