How to stop procrastinating?

[UserFriendly]

I'd love to get into a long story of how this has been negatively affecting my life and and storytelling and all, but I have a paper I haven't started yet due in two hours. Seriously.

 

[Wiesman44]

you have complete control over if you want or don't want to procrastinate. If you don't have the willpower, then it sucks to be you.

 

[Berlex]

I just learned about a great way to stop procrastinating...I'll tell you about it later.

 

[ChalengeGuyFan]

When the rope gets tight around my neck, that's when I stop procrastinating, lol.

But seriously, old fashioned will power to do a small amount of work often is the only way to keep away from a miserable situation.

So set up tiny goals which you can complete fast and easily (eg: write two sentences about X) and spread the work over large amount of time (ie start early).

 

[Atom Smasher]

^^^ This ^^^

I have several small timers in my place and I use them to turn seemingly impossible tasks into do-able small chunks.

When my place gets a little sloppy, I set a timer for 5 minutes in each room, and then go around to each section of my apt. and clean up just for those 5 minutes. Then I might go around again for a second sweep. Using a timer is one of the best things I've ever discovered, because it adds a sense of structure, which is what I need.

For a written project, break it into tiny tasks.
1) Clear off desk. Go do something else.
2) Place paper, pencils, pens, notebooks, textbooks into position on desk. Go do something else.
3) Read reference materials to get an initial exposure. Go DSE.
4) Read again and then start writing for 10 or 15 minutes. Go DDS.

You get the idea. Not only are you getting the task done in small, manageable chunks, you are also training yourself to realize that these task which seem overwhelming are actually do-able by you.

Works for me. I've come a long way using these techniques. For me, the whole idea is creating structure where there is none.