There are plenty of things in your life that can have an affect on your wellbeing without you even realising it, and procrastination is one of them. Putting important things off that you don’t want to do because you don’t like doing it, find it boring or think it’s too difficult will have an impact on your life. It can affect both your personal and business relationships, your health and cause sleepless nights which have an affect on how you feel the next day. However, there are a number of things that you can do to avoid procrastination or at least limit it so that you can get things done. Read on and find out how you can beat procrastination with the help of a virtual assistant.
Create a To Do List
On thing that I find really helpful to make sure that I get the important tasks done and to avoid procrastination is to create a to do list. I actually use a bullet journal for this, and the first thing I do when I sit down to my desk is create a to do list for the day, every day without fail.
Once you have a to do list you will find that there are plenty of tasks that you could outsource to a virtual assistant rather than do yourself. Outsourcing these tasks will ensure that they get done and means that you can use the time saved on the remaining tasks on your list. But don’t dive into the most difficult one first, get a feeling of accomplishment and motivation by doing the easiest ones first. This will move you forward to complete the more difficult tasks that you were avoiding.
Start Working First Thing in the Morning
For a lot of people starting work early in the morning means less distractions and more time to focus on completing your to do list. Deter people walking into your office by closing the door, this will help to keep you moving forward on your tasks. Email is a massive distraction so don’t check it until the afternoon, or better still ask your VA to look at it for you.
I am lucky enough to be working from home and the first thing I do in the morning is take my dog for a walk, so my most productive hours are later in the day. Some of you may find that you work better in the afternoon rather than the morning, so do the more important or involved tasks later in the day. If you do find yourself working first thing in the morning, probably most of you, you might find this article “15 Ideas to Help Create Your Best Morning Routine” useful.
Hiring a virtual assistant to assist you and delegating the less important tasks to them will mean that you can concentrate on the important tasks rather than procrastinating over the less important on your list.
Take Frequent Breaks
Now this one is something that I will certainly be making more effort to do. Even though I walk my dog each morning I still find myself sitting at my desk for hours at a time. Sitting for long periods of time is also detrimental to your health so taking regular breaks will not only allow your brain to be less cluttered but is also better for your health.
Take five minute breaks during the day to stand, stretch (you could even do some desk yoga) and move away from your computer. Go for a walk or meet with a friend to free your mind off your work for a few minutes. Coffee and cake is always good…probably not so good for your health though!
If you find yourself still forgetting to take a break ask your VA to schedule them into your calendar in a bright colour so that they stand out from all the other appointments you have scheduled for the day.
Find Out Why You Procrastinate
Finding out the reason behind why you procrastinate will help you beat procrastination for good. Getting to the root cause means that you will be able to address the problem and move forward to a day where you are free from procrastinating and end up being more productive in the process. Is it decisions that you don’t like making or the feeling of work overload? Or do you really enjoy the buzz from the challenge of having to meet tight deadlines? Decide what it is that compels you to put off completing the important tasks on your to do list and start making changes to avoid letting these destructive behaviours have a negative impact on your career.
Having a VA on hand to outsource tasks to on a regular basis will lighten your workload considerably. Being able to make decisions quickly will help you feel more in control of your career, and this will then have a knock on effect and help prevent further procrastination. If you find yourself chasing around last minute to meet a deadline, rather than getting on with it in a timely manner, may mean that you are bored with the task. So why not outsource and allow yourself to focus on tasks that you find more meaningful or enjoyable.
Over time, you’ll notice the benefits and rewards of meeting deadlines and business goals. With the help of a great VA, you will finally have that extra time to work on passion projects, to explore new hobbies or new business opportunities that may have escaped your attention if you were still stuck in that dreaded procrastination cycle.
If you would like to find out more information about how a virtual assistant can help you with your business and give you your time back email me today and let’s set up a time to talk about how I can help you. Or take a look at my blog to find out more ways how a virtual assistant can help you.
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