I’m a Recovering Procrastinator

There is an audio version at the end. 

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When you’re hustling hard while building your dream on the side, you use every bit of time you have wisely. You get a very limited amount of time to get everything accomplished, and you realize if you’re going to live your dream, you better not mess around during that time. When you are living your dream, however, it can be a different story.

My first days of freedom were in the beginning part of 2013. I could finally get a full eight hours of sleep after working 60 to 80 hours weeks delivering bread for 12 years. I had the blessing of waking up those January mornings knowing I was doing what I love.

The first few days were weird. Most of the time I didn’t know what I should be doing. I went from having NO real free time to having WAY too much. I started each morning writing my fingers off, by midday, I was on the couch watching daytime soap operas. I did get some things accomplished but not as much as when I had my day job.

Over time, I figured out a balance and got more accomplished, but I have to be honest, I still suck. I’m a recovering procrastinator who has to battle for productivity every day. A lot of people say, “I don’t know how you get so much done.” I think, “Really?” If you followed me day-to-day, you would be disappointed.

I’m not writing this post because I have figured out how to beat procrastination. I’m writing this to ask for accountability and let you know we all have the same struggles. While you may think I write a lot and accomplish much, I don’t. I could write a book every week if I stopped slacking.

My wife goes to work, my kids go to school, and I have eight hours to myself during weekdays. Yes, I do have coaching clients. Yes, I do have consulting work, but I could be doing so much more.

A Few Lessons

I have been thinking about this the past few weeks. Here’s what I’ve observed about procrastination.

1. You have to form good habits. The key to success and change is having good habits. I’ve seen this in my weight loss and other areas of my life. To beat procrastination, I have to come up with a productive schedule each day and keep up with it. I have to start slow and keep building good habits. My friend Alex tells me it takes 66 days to form a habit. Forming good habits will benefit your life and productivity.

2. Drink more water. I haven’t looked at the stats, but I’m guessing they’ll back this up. I can tell you from personal experience when I drink coffee or a sugary drink, I feel like I have less energy. Drinking more water throughout the day helps me and keeps me energized.

3. Stay accountable. Besides this post and help from all of you, I have a coach and several masterminds that I remain accountable to. Sometimes you just need people in your life that will call you out.

4. Do the things you dread first. There are a lot of things I still dread doing—especially uncomfortable stuff like dealing with money stuff. I’ve found I can do that stuff first and look forward to doing what I enjoy later.

5. Do it anyways. Sometimes you just have to do what needs to get done. If you don’t, nothing will get accomplished. This is life, and we’re adults, we have responsibilities that need to take care of.

Life is short. Time is too precious to waste procrastinating. It’s something we all struggle with and can always work on. I’m going to make a conscious effort the rest of this year. I hope you’ll join me.

It sucks when you’re building a dream on the side, and there’s a lot to do. It’s easy to give into the temptation to put off what you need to accomplish. That won’t help get you to your dream.

Audio version: 

How do you handle procrastination?

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Photo: Flickr/ Jessica Quinn