“I am stuck, I just cannot make a decision. There are so many things to choose from….” – are common indicators that the procrastination police are needed to help you move on. So how can you move on through the plethora of ‘stuff’ and actually do something?
Sometimes we find ourselves stuck and procrastinate in what we are doing.
Perhaps we are focusing our efforts on how much we do not want to be doing something rather than just getting on and getting it done.
Perhaps we are stuck because we cannot see how to start the mammoth task that sits in front of us.
A few quick suggestions to help you escape the malaise.
- Start with a large sheet of paper and in the centre, write or draw what the stuck issue is. Fill the page with text or pictures that relate to this issue. Think about your emotions and the smaller tasks that need to be performed. From this, highlight the ones that are important to do first, then second etc. Set a timeline against them and away you go.
- When you are thinking about the stuck issue, think about the feeling you will have when you have completed it. What reward could you give yourself a reward for completing it?
- How much time have you spent on the stuck issue? How does this relate to a financial amount of time away from something that you would prefer doing? How much of this are you going to allow yourself (yes yourself) to spend without parking the issue or getting on and starting it?
- Focus on one thing at a time. We all have complex lives with many inputs and subsequent outputs but focussing on one element will help to achieve that element of stuckness.
- Do you work closely with a friend or colleague? If so, why not think about confiding in them about the problem that you have in getting on with something. Introduce them to holding you to account to moving ahead on this stuck issue? Perhaps they have some suggestions for you?
- Time manage your stuck issues. There are times that all of us are motivated to work on complex issues, and times to consolidate during a working day. Schedule the time for the stuck issue in your diary whilst also remembering to capture your objective for the time that you are committing to the stuck issue. Review next steps at the end of the allotted time.
- Think about what the consequences are of not completing the stuck issue. What is assured to happen if you do not complete?
The choice is now a constant, with ubiquitous information available just by firing up your favourite search engine. The clever move is to see through this and get to a decision. I hope the above helps but please share what else you use in making a decision.
