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CDS Member News and ArticlesProfessional News Articles : FRONT DESK by Mary M. Byers, CAE : Overcome procrastination Overcome procrastinationJanuary 22, 2010 Is there a task that continues to appear on your “To Do” list day after day and week after week? (And maybe even month after month?) Read on to find out how to conquer the procrastination that’s keeping you from getting things done! Understand why you are procrastinating. Are you uncertain as to how to complete the task? Don’t have the resources necessary? Need a large chunk of time to complete it? Or simply don’t like the task? Understanding why you keep putting a project off will help you figure out how to get it done. If you don’t understand the project, seek advice from someone who does. If you don’t have the necessary resources, list what you’ll need and then make plans to secure what you need. If you need uninterrupted time, ask coworkers to help you get it or consider staying late or coming into the office on the weekend. If you don’t like the task, delegate it if you can. If you can’t, move to the next step. Set a time limit. I personally don’t like filing. To me, it’s uninteresting and I know I could use the time it takes to complete something else. I used to let my filing pile up until the task was overwhelming. Now, thanks to a tip I learned from a friend, I set a timer for 10 minutes and begin to file. Knowing I’ll only have to do it for 10 minutes makes it easier to get started. Tackle ongoing tasks more frequently. Instead of waiting until a task is overwhelming, tackle it while it’s small. Since filing is an ongoing, necessary part of my business, I no longer wait until I can’t wait any longer. Instead, I use a timer (as suggested above)—and I do it more frequently. I find that two 10-minute sessions each week is much more palatable then one 20-minute session. Doing tasks you don’t enjoy for shorter periods makes it easier to tackle the project to begin with. Break projects into a series of tasks. Large projects can make you feel overwhelmed and paralyzed. Instead of letting the paralysis lead to procrastination, make a list of the small jobs that will enable you to accomplish the larger task. Then, pick one small chore and focus on it. When it is completed, pick another to work on. Eventually, you’ll gain momentum and be well on your way to finishing the project! Make a decision. Not belng able to decide often becomes an excuse for procrastination. We can’t decide how to start something, so we don’t. We can’t decide what we want the end result to be, so we don’t even start the project. If you have trouble making decisions, give yourself a deadline. Tell yourself that you’ll make a decision regarding the new software next week. Then, do it. Decisions often galvanize people into action. Get into the habit of acting even if you don’t feel like it. Successful people take the next step in any project without asking themselves if they feel like it. They realize that inspiration only comes occasionally, but that perspiration is what gets things done. They don’t wait for their creative muse to show up. Instead, they focus on what needs to be done without asking how they feel. Focus on the outcome instead of what it will take to get you there. Instead of thinking about the mechanics of filing, I think about how nice it will be when I can see the top of my desk again and I can locate any piece of paper I need. Think about the pleasurable aspects of completing a task rather than the painful, boring or distasteful aspects and you’ll be more motivated to cross items off your list. Reward yourself. Rewards can be great incentives to finish a project you’ve been putting off. The bigger the project, the bigger the reward should be. Now that I’m done writing this article, I think I’ll go have a piece of cake! CDS presents Front Desk, a column addressing problems dentists and staff members experience in the office. Front Desk is prepared by Mary M. Byers, CAE, a professional speaker and freelance writer. Ms. Byers may be reached at mbyers@marybyers.com or www.marybyers.com. Send suggestions for topics to be covered to review@cds.org. © 2010, Chicago Dental Society
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