Procrastination. Bad habit that we all carry around, something that stops us from doing what we always wanted to do, or something that makes us feel bad. As the fashion week season is approaching, I have a lot of work to do, emails to send, meetings to schedule and it all just seems a little bit too much. You know it reminds me of being a student, when I would rather do anything but sit down and work on the project. We always rather do anything but that one thing we really have to do.
Funny how I know that some of you will be procrastinating while reading this post. I mean you might have homework or an exam to study for yet you will be here just for a quick read, as there is aways something else we need to do before that dreaded task, for that reason I will make it short and simple. Truth is that we would be much happier and would sleep better if we would dig into those tasks as soon as they pop into our mind. Currently I have 2 suitcases full of summer and winter clothes behind me that are waiting to be unpacked but somehow I am writing this post, well that is prioritising not procrastination, but as soon as I am done with writing this post, I am gonna get onto those suitcases, by using some of my own tips (for once haha)
In the past I can tell you million examples of where I just got defeated by putting away things I should have simply done. Like doing a homework last minute and not doing it as well as I wanted or when I just didn’t prepare well for projects or trips as long as I should have because I was putting preparation away until the last moment. Its always the same thing, so I prepared some things here for you that really work with me and could help you too.
1.If it takes less than a minute just do it immediately.
Messiness is created by laziness or rushing. My new rule is that if something takes less than 1 minute of your time do it immediately. For example putting a coat on the hanger rather than a chair and saying ” I ll do it later”, putting your shoes on the shelf takes definitely less than a minute yet somehow we always end up just throwing them in the corner once they are off the feet. One minute rule really helped me keep my life a lot more organised and mess free.
2.Write a to do list. Once its on the list its much easier to stick to doing just the things that you see on that paper in front of you and not watching TV. When I am on the go I also use the apps such as Notes or Evernote, to keep my thoughts organised.
3.Just do it. I might have slightly borrowed a line from Nike here, but its so true. The most difficult part is starting something, weather its going to the gym or writing up an assignment, start by the little things, like putting on the trainers or opening the Word file. Its actual fact that starting is what makes everything so hard, as that is the bit we put of the most. Once I open the suitcase I Realise that its actually not that difficult to unpack for the 7th time this year, or once I switch the camera on I find out that video making really can be done without all the procrastinating.
4.If a task is actually a hard one to tackle or demands a lot of thinking and planning, start with a pen and paper, draft a little plan on how you are going to achieve it and you will feel a lot more motivated to do it there and then. This is a secret tip that always helps me with more complicated tasks.
5.Cancel out all the things that distract you. If its internet use those sites like FocalFilter that blocks sites like Facebook and Twitter for a certain amount of time. This used to work best for me when I was a student, I needed to use internet, but I found myself checking Facebook out a lot, so I would block it for several hours. I would tell my boyfriend and friends not to text, and just go for it. Switch off your phone and just do what works for you.
6.Do one task at the time. My biggest problem would be this. I start writing a post, then I start replying to an important email, then my sister calls me to discuss a next project with her. I start new projects before I completed the one I had started before, and that really messes up my mind. Before I know it I have 5 tasks I started and none are completed. Make sure to start one thing, complete it and then focus on the other one. No only you will be doing them faster than you thought, but the results would be better too.
7.Reward yourself. I remember when I was a teenager my mum told me I can go to cinema with friends if I learned the history and told her all about it before 7pm. It was never easier, in fact I realised I almost liked studying it and wanted to do it, because I was motivated with the reward. Nowadays I give myself rewards too, like spending time with my sister, watching movie with the family or Skyping with my babe. Its all part of work in progress and you can’t be motivated if there is no light at the end of the tunnel.
Now get of this website and do that one thing that you really have to do, we all have those tasks at the back of our head that we are putting of for weeks. If you would like to see a video on this topic, let me know. The sooner its done the more time you will spend enjoying not thinking about it. I am off to battle with those suitcases and clearing out my wardrobe, so wish me luck!
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Odgadjanje. Losa navika od koje svi patimo, nesto sto nas zaustavlja da uradimo i ostvarimo sve one stvari koje smo zeleli, ili nesto zbog cega se osecamo lose. Kako mi se priblizava sezona nedelja mode imam mnogo planiranja i posla da odradim, mejlova da posaljem i sastanaka da ugovorim, ali sve mi se cini malo previse. Pritiska me i sama sebi govorim sutra cu. To me podseca na dane kada sam bila student, kada bih radije spremala kucu nego ucila, radila bilo sta drugo osim ono sto zaista moram.
Zanimljivo je to sto neki sigurno odgadjaju druge, vaznije zadatke dok citaju ovaj tekst, Mozda imate domaci, ili spremate ispit, ali ipak ste kliknuli na blog da se malo zabavite. Zato cu ipak probati da ovaj tekst napisem na jednostavan nacin. Istina je da bismo svi spavali mnogo bolje i osecali se srecnije kada ne bismo imali sve te naporne misli i zadatke na umu. Ah opet nisam vratila knjigu u biblioteku. Trenutno imam dva puta kofera odece iza mene dok ovo pisem, slusam Britney i trazim nacin da odgodim raspakivanje. Odlucila sam da ipak prvo napisem ovaj post, jer to je prioritet, ali cim zavrsim bacam se u bitku sa koferima, cak cu iskoristiti neke od svojih saveta.
Mogu nabrojati toliko primera iz proslosti gde me je odgadjanje totalno porazilo. Kao taj domaci iz geografije koji sam na kraju na brzinu odradila i uopste nije ispao kako sam zelela. Pripremanja za putovanja i projekte takodje zahtevaju mnogo vremena, a ako to odlazete ostace vam nedovoljno prostora da sve ispadne kako ste zamisljali. To dovodi do razocaranja, naravno. Uvek ista stvar nas sputava, zato sam pripremila nekoliko saveta, jer mislim da bi vam mogli pomoci.
1.Ako zadatak zahteva manje od minut vremena uradite ga odma.
Haos se stvori kada ste lenji ili zurite. Moje novo pravilo je da kada nesto zahteva manje od minuta to uradim odmah. Taj kaput koji ste ostavili na stolicu sa idejom “kasnije cu” mogao je biti na vesalici za samo 20 sekundi, cipele ne moraju biti bacene u cosku jer isto tako zahtevaju manje od minute da se odloze na mesto. Jedan minut pravilo mi je pomoglo da budem organizovanija i da se otarasim haosa.
2.Napravite listu obaveza. Kada je sve na papiru mnogo nam je lakse da vizualizujemo zadatke i znamo sta treba obaviti. Kada sam u pokretu i nemam papir kod sebe koristim aplikacije kao sto su Notes i Evernote, one cuvaju moje misli na jednom mestu.
3.Just do it. Mozda sam ovde pozajmila cuvenu recenicu od Nike-a, ali zaista je tako. Najtezi deo bilo kog zadatka je pocetak. Kada je u pitanju odlazak u teretanu ili pisanje bitnog rada, isto pravilo vazi. Obujte patike ili otvorite Word aplikaciju i prvi korak je vec napravljen. Cinjenica je da je prvi korak zaista najtezi, zato ga cesto odlazemo toliko. Kada otvorim moj kofer shvaticu da zapravo nisam trebala toliko odlagati raspakivanje, jer sam to vec uradila 7 puta ove godine. Isto vazi za snimanje videa, kada upalim kameru shvatim da to nije toliko tesko.
4.Ako je zadatak ili obaveza zaista komplikovana, onda pocnite sa olovkom i papirom. Ja konkretno volim da u tom slucaju napisem kako planiram da izvedem sve sto je potrebno, napravim plan i to me motivise da se bacim na posao. Ovo je tajni savet koji mi pomaze da se izborim sa tezim obavezama.
5.Sve sto vas odvraca od obavljanja obaveza nema sta da trazi oko vas. Ako je u pitanju internet onda koristite sajtove poput FocalFilter i blokirajte sve sto vam oduzima vreme i paznju. Dok sam bila student ucila sam uz kompjuter koji je bio neophodan za citanje raznih istrazivanja. S vremena na vreme uhvatila bih sebe na Facebook-u i tada sam shvatila da moram koristiti sajtove koji blokiraju ove ometace te blokirala facebook na nekoliko sati i ucila produktivnije. Ugasite telefon ili recite prijateljima i decku da vas ne ometaju.
6.Uvek radite samo jedan zadatak. Ovo je moj najveci problem. Ja krenem da pisem post, onda krenem da odgovaram na mejl koji je upravo stigao, pa me sestra zove da raspravimoplan za rad na sledecem projektu. Pocinjem nove zadatke pre nego sam zavrsila prethodne i to mi oduzima mnogo vremena. Uvek pocnite jedan zadatak, zavrsite ga pa se bacite na sledeci. Ne samo da cete tako sve brzi zavrsiti ali ce i rezultati biti bolji jer cete sve obavljati sa boljom koncentracijom.
7.Nagradite se. Secam se kada sam bila tinejdzerka mama mi je rekla da mogu da idem u bioskop sa drustvom samo ako naucim poslednju lekciju iz istorije pre 7 uvece. Nikada mi ucenje nije lakse palo, sve sam naucila i cak nekako s ljubavlju jer sam znala da me posle toga cewka nagrada. U danasnje vreme sama sebe nagradjujem, tako sto odredim vreme koje cu provesti sa sestrom, porodicom, prijateljima, odem u shopping, gledam film ili skajpujem sa deckom. Sve je to deo progresa i rada, ali ne mozete biti motivisani ako svetla nema na kraju tunela.
Sada se skidajte sa interneta i bacite na ono sto morate da obavite, svi imamo neke zadatke koji cuce u podsvesti i pritiskaju nas a mi ih odlazemo. Ako zelite i video na ovu temu ostavite komentar. Sto pre sve zavrsite imacete vise vremena za zabavu. Ja sada idem da se borim sa koferom i da spremam garderober, pozelite mi srecu!