Ah I hear this word multiple times a day and although we can probably all identify with the word "procrastinate", it can mean soooo many different underlying thoughts and feelings.
Do you notice a trend with the things that you procrastinate over? Are they boring tasks, long tasks, things that you don't know where to start or things that you don't know the step by step approach?
If you can uncover the "real" thoughts and feelings instead of accepting the label of "procrastination" then you actually stand a chance of moving through it. For example if you tell yourself you are a procrastinator then that is what you will be!
Consider the advantages of being a procrastinator - what does it protect you from? Hard work, failure, attention etc? There is always a positive intent behind our behaviour so looking at the procrastination from a curious position and acknowledging that it is trying to keep you safe can offer yourself some compassion.
Once you have looked at these positive outcomes from procrastination you can choose whether the risk of taking action outweighs the benefit and stay where you are... or, if you would like to shift into taking action, then finding ways to soothe these needs and worries will take some of the obstacles away.
The other big factor with procrastination is that we see the task as one big overwhelming mess of other tasks and no clear direction of where to start and what steps to take. Breaking a task down (either on your own or with someone else) can really help start to identify exactly what the smaller do-able tasks are. So for instance instead of deciding to declutter your house you can now see that actually clearing one surface or one drawer is a very worthwhile part of the puzzle!
Let me know what you have learnt about yourself reading this blog :-)
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