We all procrastinate sometimes. The danger is letting it become a habit because all that stuff piles up and has to get done sometime. It causes stress and unmet deadlines. People will consider you to be unreliable and your achievements will be few. It doesn’t feel good to be stressed out and it certainly does not look impressive to slack on your obligations. Try these tips to avoid procrastination.

Understand why you procrastinate. Self doubt and fear are the biggest reasons. You worry the results might not be good enough or your work may be rejected. Big deal. You get even less points for incompletion. Fear of imperfection is not noble; it is a cop out, so just get to work!

Attitude plays a big role in how your approach a project. If you say you hate it or dread it, you are going to be stuck in that negative place where no ideas will come to you and you will continue to hate it and dread it. Attach something positive to the start of a tough project so that you will actually look forward to it rather than dreading it. Before you go to bed the night before, psych yourself up by thinking about the venti mocha cappuccino you are going to splurge on before work and enjoy while working on your project. Give yourself something to look forward to and offset the dread.

Clean up your area. A clear, tidy workspace will block out distraction and improve focus. The result will be increased productivity and efficiency.

Beware the time wasters. If you like to play Tai Pai, schedule it at your break time. Schedule time to read and manage your email and surf for research and news. If left unchecked, these things could eat hours of your day.

Massive jobs can cause anxiety and procrastination. Smaller jobs are easy to get ahold of and finish quickly which leaves us with a feeling of accomplishment. So break those bigger jobs down into a smaller series that are more easily manageable and can keep you excited as they are completed.

Work with a buddy to keep one another focused and motivated. You are less likely to get into a rut and you will both be more productive and happy.

Even if you follow these suggestions to the letter you will not overcome procrastination in one day. Do not be discouraged. It takes practice and determination but soon your habit will be to get straight to work when a task comes along. No longer will you waste time avoiding anything and whether you are at home or at work, you will see your productivity soar.