10 Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Organized
10 Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Organized
I don’t know if you have problems with procrastinating like I sometimes do but here are 10 ways to stop procrastinating and get more organized! Procrastination is a bad habit that is hard to break and even when you are doing MUCH better it slowly can creep back up on you! So if that sounds familiar I hope these tips help you!
Procrastinating has always been a struggle for me. It actually runs in my family. I think back to when I was in school and I see just how bad I was at procrastinating. I would do anything other than my homework or clean my room.
Instead, I would, of course, choose things that were fun and put off the not so fun things until the last minute. Then when I had to rush and get things done I didn’t do my best work.
As I became an adult, wife, and mother, I have found that putting things off can end up really bad! You have to be prepared and use your time wisely if you want things to get done. I have learned as the years have gone by to overcome my procrastinating habits.
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Here are the 10 ways to stop procrastinating and get more organized that have helped me find time to be more productive.
1. Identify What Takes Up Your Time
What is taking up most of your time? If you were to stop and really think about any spare time you have what are you doing? Then decide if that is time well spent or not!
Do you spend too much time on Social Media?
Are you putting off important tasks to clean when you could do that later?
Are you overthinking and stalling?
Take a hard look at how you are choosing to spend your time and identify what is really take up your time and making you “too busy” to get your important task done.
Related Post: 5 Easy Ways to Find Time in Your Day
2. Reorganize Your Schedule
Instead of doing what you want first in your day, do the important task that you are putting off first. Or if you find that you are more productive during a certain part of the day then more that task to that time frame.
Rearrange your schedule to make it more effective for you to get your task done. If you move some things around in your schedule to different time frames then you may be more likely to get it done.
For example, if I decide to clean all morning then I am worn out in the afternoon and struggle to work on my computer. But if I work first then my important task is done and I have the rest of the day to catch up on housework.
I did the same thing during the day but in a more productive order that ensures everything gets accomplished.
3. Make a List
Make a list of the things you want to accomplish during the day and then map out your day. At the beginning of the day, I think about all the things that need to be done.
Between what’s for supper, is tonight gymnastics, what yards need to be mowed (we have a small lawn care company), have I billed everyone for said yards, where am I at on my blog etc. It can get overwhelming.
If I don’t write it all down then I forget and things don’t get done.
If I make a list and I see what all needs to be done then I just start chipping away at that list and I love seeing those things get crossed off! When I get to the end of the list I feel so good! I feel like I can relax a little and that I have earned it!
Also having that list you can see the order in which things need to be done. If there are things that need to all be done while you are in town then group them together. Things that need to be done at home then group them.
Then multiple things can be done at once and crossed off the list all at once!
4. Give Yourself a Time Limit
Allow yourself only so long to do each thing you need to accomplish that day. Set a time limit for each item. This sets a sense of urgency when you see you only have X amount of time left to finish that item.
This also keeps you from spending too much time on one item. I do the budgeting for our family so every Friday I like to see where we are. Payday Friday I map everything out and then the next Friday I see how we are doing staying on our budget.
Now life has a funny way of not caring about what you have planned so it never works perfectly but at least I tried! It shouldn’t take all day or even hours but I can end up spending hours planning ahead for the future.
This is when I have to set a timer. It should only take 30mins-1hour tops. Also, the time limit works great for cleaning because I see that oven timer ticking down and I really rush to get it done so I can be more productive with my day!
5. Pick Up The Pace
I have a very laid back personality so I can just mosey along with my day and get half as much done that I could have if I would have just picked up the pace.
So I have tried hard to pick up the pace while working on my to-do list.
It works great along with #4 and setting a timer. It just lights a little fire under you to get more done in your day.
6. Multitask
Now some people say this can cause you to be less productive but I’m not talking about talking on the phone while typing an email. I am talking about turning on the washer and dishwasher first so they can run while you are vacuuming type thing.
If you multitask and do things in the right order you will get more done during the day.
Maybe you listen to an audiobook or watch a training video while you are cooking supper or folding laundry instead of watching T.V. Maybe you answer emails on your phone while you are waiting for gymnastics practice to be over instead of scrolling on Facebook.
The other day I had to drive 3 hours to meet with my friend so instead of listening to the radio I listened to videos from my favorite blogger to help better myself.
We all multitask already but choosing better things to do while multitasking will make a huge difference.
7. Wake Up 30 Minutes Earlier
We all know this is a great one that is easier said than done. I am not a morning person so waking up earlier is hard for me.
Sleep is good for us so you just need to use your time more wisely and get to bed on time (instead of scrolling through social media).
I have always been a night owl and never an early riser but I have found that if I stay up 30 minutes later that I start my day off tired and grumpy and I get less done during the day.
If I go to bed on time but wake up 30 minutes earlier I still have that same 30 extra minutes but I am much more productive!
Related Post: 3 Reasons Why The Way You Dress Impacts Your Productivity
Download this printable to hang on your wall to remind yourself to stay focused! Don’t procrastinate, download it for free now!
8. Meal Prep
I didn’t realize just how amazing meal prepping is! I knew to eat healthier that meal prepping made all the difference but what I didn’t know is how meal prepping saves so much time and headache period!
It has made a huge difference! Also, it has helped our budget extremely because my husband doesn’t just order something because supper is already ready when he walks in the door from work! (I started this habit while working a full-time job because I was too tired to cook after work. But with everything prepped it saved the day!)
I started prepping lunches too. These are what I used for my daughter’s lunches and these for my husband and I’s lunches!
9. It’s Okay To Say No
This one goes along the lines of the time-wasters. I am very bad about not saying no, I always get suckered into saying yes.
Every once in awhile it’s okay to say no.
I recently had a hard time saying no and I felt guilty about it at first but good about it later. My neighbor asked if I could watch her daughter and I told her no which bothered me at first but then I thought “Darn it, my life is important and my blog is important too and it deserves my attention!”
So it is okay to say no! Again, it is all about a healthy balance. You don’t want to always work and never enjoy life but you can’t always enjoy life and never work either.
10. Spark!
Spark is a complete LIFESAVER! If you haven’t heard of it then let me just change your life real quick!
Spark is an amazing healthy energy drink. I have never had a monster or any of those types of energy drinks and I was very skeptical about this one when I first heard about it. Spark is made by AdvoCare and isn’t sold in stores.
You can only get it from a distributor. My bestie had signed up and finally talked me into trying it and it is like liquid gold.
I am very stingy with it. I’m not gonna lie, I do not like to share….it is my “happy mommy juice” so no one takes it from mama! I will try not to go on and on about it because I most definitely could.
Spark helped me become the productive mom I had always dreamed of being. I would drag all day and drink coffee and Mountain Dew trying to have the energy to get through the day.
It’s just another amazing thing that changed my life and I would be selfish not to share that with you! I am beyond thankful my friend shared it with me!
I have been drinking it since 2012 and I don’t go a day without it!
There You Have It
I hope some of these tips help you kick your procrastination habit and get more stuff done!
My best advice to stop procrastinating and get more organized are these 5 simple words… MASSIVE ACTION SOLVES ALL PROBLEMS.
I wrote that on a note and stuck it on my fridge so I could see it every day. It would remind me that even if I didn’t know where to start, I just needed to start. I just needed to get moving and the rest would work itself out!
Keep moving forward!
Vanessa