From Self-Sabotage To Full Self-Expression: Lesson 5 (Overcoming Procrastination)

This is the fifth lecture in a series of 7 focused on helping you overcome self-sabotage so you can step into full self-expression (converted from a week-long coaching video course I led on the subject). This lesson looks at how to overcome procrastination. (P.S. Be sure to listen to this series in order for best results!)

Transcript

Hello and welcome to day five of seven on our epic journey together to overcoming that nasty nasty villain of self-sabotage.

Today we're gonna look at an oldie but goodie,

Procrastination.

Because come on who doesn't procrastinate?

So we all know that procrastination looks like putting things off whether it's taking action or just making decisions in our minds but there are a lot of different reasons that we procrastinate.

Sometimes it's the sense that things are completely out of our control anyway which is a flavor of victimhood.

We indulge in that belief and then we act as if it's true.

Well nothing I do is gonna make a difference anyway so I'm just gonna not do anything at all.

Sit on my couch and watch it fail.

Refer back to video number one for how to get out of this way of being and thinking.

Another reason we procrastinate is pure lack of motivation.

In coaching terms self-enrollment is missing.

In that case you've got to find the reason that you want to do the thing.

You've got to find it or invent it.

What's the breakthrough that you're playing for for example?

What do you want to create with not just what you do but how you do it?

What's the thing that you get to practice with it?

What's the secret challenge that you're gonna create for yourself?

Make it fun.

Give it meaning and that'll make motivation less of a challenge for you.

Here's my favorite reason for procrastination.

Crippling perfectionism that has us needing the conditions to be absolutely pristine and perfect before we feel comfortable even starting something.

E.

B.

White said this about writing,

A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without ever putting a word on paper.

So apply that truth to whatever your thing is.

Remind yourself that ideal conditions just don't exist.

Do it anyway.

Don't let perfect be the enemy of good and done.

So only even if you only have 20 minutes between errands to work on your thing,

Even if you're cranky,

Even if you haven't had your magical green juice today yet,

Draw Nike's logo on your hand every day if you need to remind yourself to just do it.

Just do it already.

Okay so those were some of the reasons that we procrastinate and there were for sure a few tips in there but I have a few more for you.

Here are my three antidotes for procrastination.

Number one is what I like to call urgency on purpose and that's opposed to what most of us do.

Urgency out of a sense of emergency.

No fun.

Think about it.

When do most of us really hustle into action and make shit happen?

When there's a lot of external pressure.

Here's an example.

The end of the quarter is just two weeks away and you're nowhere near hitting your sales numbers as a salesperson.

So you go into complete overdrive doing everything you can to hit those numbers before the close of the quarter so you can get that bonus you really want right and you know maybe you even amaze yourself with how much you're able to accomplish when you really put your mind to it and maybe you even hit your numbers but more likely than not you won't because you just didn't leave yourself enough time and there's only so many hours in each day and in addition to that you probably stress yourself out so hard that it takes you an additional two or three weeks just to recover.

That's what urgency from emergency looks like.

Urgency on purpose is when you create urgency for yourself with timelines of your own and your own purpose for sticking to them.

My coach and I had a really great conversation about this a while ago when I kept moving a declaration I had around my business out and out like one month at a time.

Very sneaky on my part.

So my coach helped me get clear on why I would want to stop being so laissez-faire about it and create urgency on purpose for myself because sure I could wait until I really had to hustle when I started running out of money for example and that wouldn't be fun at all.

Hey do you want to be my client because I really need clients.

Or I could create the motivation right then.

So I did.

I got incredibly clear on what filling up my practice sooner would give me.

What it would make possible for me.

For example I would be able to make free offerings like this one.

I would be able to read more,

To write more,

To catch up with friends on Marco Polo more.

I love doing that.

And to travel for fun more.

So with that clarity of purpose okay that's why I actually want to create this sooner instead of just like letting it take however long it takes without putting any of my own action to it.

Remember co-creation with the universe instead of letting the universe do it all.

So yeah with that clarity of purpose I you know put the pedal to the metal and I was able to do it all with a sense of fun instead of you know coming from that place of emergency.

And that is urgency on purpose.

Really good stuff.

Number two antidote for procrastination.

Challenge yourself to make decisions in the moment and to make decisions more independently because often what really slows us down is waiting around for other people's feedback.

Of course sometimes that's what's truly needed but get really clear for yourself on when that's the case and when you're just giving away your power to give away your power.

You'll increase your trust in yourself the more decisive you become and you'll save yourself a whole lot of time.

Number three prioritize by impact.

In other words work on the most important things first.

Most women create giant endless to-do lists and then they start with the things that are least intimidating or it might take you know the least time to do and these are often very small things that have little to do with our highest intentions.

So you can even create two lists.

This is what I do.

One with the top five most important projects that you need to move forward and one with everything else.

Always start working with the top five first in order of importance or impact.

You know like number one is the most important project that I need to move along and that's not to say you need to get number one completely done before you move on to anything else.

I mean of course it might be like a really big project that's gonna take a ton of time but you can do a certain amount of work to move it forward that day and move on to the number two and so on.

And go over to the other list when you need a break from the top five or in the you know one hour let's say you set aside each day to work on you know many tasks from the other list like ordering XYZ on Amazon or getting back to Carla about XYZ.

And here's one more small bonus antidote specifically about email.

Don't leave emails in limbo.

I have a few clients who've told me that they work on emails for a really long time you know they just keep rereading them they leave them in draft they just keep working on and working on them until they feel like they're perfect or just until it's like the deadline to send the freaking email.

And you know one trick that I've picked up a few years ago that helps me avoid doing this is when I start my email hey Jenny then I'll go down right after that and say thank you eCat and then I will fill in the middle.

So for whatever reason like writing the sign off before writing the body helps me send emails like right after I start them you know and just just don't let perfection be the enemy of done or good again here.

So when you start something something small like that like a little text or email to someone finish it and that'll that'll free up some mental energy for you as well as time.

So that's it for today's video I hope you have fun getting out there and punching procrastination in the face today.

Come back tomorrow for our second to last video oh my gosh we're almost done and as always let me know if there's any you know anything that I can help you with answering any questions or if you have any feedback for me I'm already starting to get some really awesome feedback and I just I love it so much so keep it coming you guys you gals love you so much and have a good one.

Reviews

Excellent

Great ideas. I'll be listening again. Thank you so much

I liked the content and delivery. I am going to look for the rest of your series. Thanks

Great for procrastination!! Making a list is what really helped me! Thank you Ruby Ray!!♥️🌷 Sorry for the duplication!

Ekat dear, I love the simplicity you employ to convey such helpful advice that certainly come in handy if applied in our daily routine. Thank you so much. Feeling grateful I bumped into your podcasts🙏🌈🤗🐦

So so practical and helpful, Ekaterina!! Thank you!!

Fantastic!! Struggled.my whole life with sabotage & all the rest. Now I’m 60! That sounds so old, but I’m super grateful for all the tools in one place, so far that I’ve only found bits & pieces here & there. So helpful to have your fabulous “how-to” guide. I am beyond grateful!!! Thanks so very very much!!!