Lesson four - prepare to change
Are you ready to change your procrastination habits? This lesson is designed to move you into a motivational state that maximizes your chances of successfully changing your habits. Assuming you've successfully completed the first three lessons of our course, Doer, you should be primed and prepared to tackle your procrastination tendencies head-on. So, without further ado, let's dive in!
Understand before acting
Changing your behavior is like fixing a broken car. When you take a broken-down car to a mechanic, they don't just start randomly changing parts! It would be quite alarming if they did. A good mechanic first tries to understand why the car isn't working! That is precisely what you’ve done over the last three units. 70% of the challenge of overcoming procrastination is understanding what is driving it. The more familiar you are with your procrastination cycle, the easier it is to intervene.
In this lesson, we'll introduce you to the four points in the procrastination cycle where you can intervene. However, before we do that, we're going to review the entire procrastination cycle one more time. The reflections you've completed in the first three units of Doer will have introduced you to the six steps of the procrastination cycle, so if you've done that, each of the steps should feel familiar to you.
The first step in the procrastination cycle is when we think about an important task we need to do. The prospect of doing the task triggers an unhelpful core belief - that's step 2. For example, a fear of judgment or lack of self-confidence. Those unhelpful core beliefs trigger step 3 - a feeling of discomfort, such as dread, stress or overwhelm. To avoid those negative sensations, we create rationalizations to feel okay about putting off the task - that's step 4. Emboldened by those rationalizations, we do an alternative task, such as checking emails or scrolling through social media - that's step 5. Finally, the alternative task creates a range of positive outcomes like finding amusing content, and negative outcomes like backfiring self-criticism. That's step 6. Those outcomes serve to reinforce our procrastination, keeping us stuck in the procrastination loop.
The diagram below summarizes this 6-step process in a simple visual diagram. I encourage you to take a screenshot, write it on a piece of paper, or whatever will make it easier for you to refer back to.
Procrastination Reinforcement Cycle
Effective Strategies for Overcoming Procrastination
As we covered in lesson one of Doer, there are over 1,000 published studies on interventions to overcome procrastination! Among these, techniques derived from cognitive-behavioral therapy showed the most substantial reduction in procrastination.
At the heart of cognitive-behavioral therapy is the understanding of the interplay among thoughts, feelings, and behavior. Thus, the most effective interventions begin with an extended period of self-reflection. This process involves jotting down a task that you're procrastinating each day and analyzing the specific thoughts and sensations associated with that task. After one to two weeks, certain patterns start to become apparent. These patterns can help guide your path to overcoming procrastination.
Once you've gained that clarity, you can transition to specific strategies for overcoming procrastination. Four key strategies have been identified as the most effective means of disrupting a cycle of procrastination. These include:
Modifying the task or your environment.
Learning to dismiss rationalizations (also referred to as procrastination excuses).
Adjusting unhelpful core beliefs.
Cultivating the ability to tolerate discomfort, which essentially is mindfulness meditation.
In lessons 5 to 10 of Doer, we delve deeper into each of these strategies. We'll provide opportunities for you to practice each one, enabling you to determine which strategies are most effective for you. Most importantly, we'll assist you in incorporating these strategies into your daily routine, thereby reinforcing your identity as a Doer.
Transitioning from reflection to action is a considerable step, so we want to ensure you're primed for success. To do this, we want to facilitate your entry into a motivational state that is conducive to change.
We will summarize the three key factors that determine your likelihood of successfully changing your procrastination habits. Many attempts to modify behavior fail because we are simply not prepared to change.
In unit four of Doer, we offer a simple 9-question survey to evaluate your readiness to change across three crucial dimensions: willingness to change, belief in the value of change, and confidence in your ability to change. By analyzing your responses, we can determine what steps you can take to enhance your chances of success. For now, we'll outline the main ideas from that personalized report in the following sections.
Willingness to change
Being willing to change your habits is essential if you're going to overcome procrastination. It's worth considering how your current habits are serving you today. Do you feel like your habits are helping you live the life you want to?
If you're up for it, take a moment to write down a response to the two questions below.
How is procrastinating important tasks in my life... hurting me?
How is procrastinating important tasks in my life... helping me?
Looking at your responses, do you think the hurt procrastination brings you outweighs how much it helps you?
When times get tough, reflect on your responses to these questions. It will remind you why you made a commitment to change and motivate you to keep going!
Belief that change is worthwhile
The more you believe that putting effort into changing your procrastination habits is worthwhile, the more likely you are to succeed.
We think that learning the skill of overcoming procrastination is one of life's highest leverage skills! It can really have a big impact on your life.
As we’ve mentioned, there are over 1,000 published studies on interventions to overcome procrastination! The take-home message from all that research is that procrastination interventions work!
Here are some of the key findings:
Cognitive-behavior therapy techniques showed the largest reduction in procrastination. Good news for you is that this is what we have based the design of this app on!
After basic training, follow-up measurements show that changes in procrastination persisted for over 365 days. In fact, people improved over time!
Because of all that, we think it is worth trying! But of course, that is up to you. To help you weigh up if it's worthwhile continuing, we recommend writing down your responses to these two questions:
If I keep using this app and follow the recommendations... what will be good?
If I keep using this app and follow the recommendations... what will be bad?
Looking at your responses, do you think the good that will come from trying outweighs the costs of trying?
If you commit to trying, you can periodically review your responses to these questions as a way of increasing your motivation to keep going!
Belief in your ability to change
The more you believe in your ability to change your procrastination habits, the more successful you are likely to be.
The fact that you have gotten to the last section of this article is a good sign! You have already shown the perseverance necessary to overcome procrastination. With Doer, you can learn the necessary skills - all you need to do is keep at it!
If you're doubting your ability, it can help to think through the roadblocks in your way. Try writing down your responses to the questions below to better prepare yourself.
What do you think is the most likely reason you won’t continue using Doer?
What is one thing you could say or do to overcome
Responding to those questions 👆already makes you about 15% more likely to succeed - not bad!
Conclusion
If you've completed the first three lessons of Doer, you've accomplished the most crucial aspect of overcoming procrastination—understanding your procrastination cycle! By answering the reflection questions in this lesson, you've primed yourself in a motivational state that readies you for change. Before you delve into learning and practicing specific strategies to modify your procrastination habits, the final step is making a commitment to change. To position yourself for success, place your hand over your heart and repeat the following:
I commit to being honest with myself.
I commit to reflecting for one minute a day.
I commit to making a change.
Superb effort—godspeed! 🚀
Key ideas:
The procrastination cycle consists of six steps: (1) Contemplating an important task, (2) which triggers an unhelpful core belief, (3) leading to a feeling of discomfort, (4) which causes us to create rationalizations, (5) resulting in choosing an alternative task, and (6) leading to experiencing both positive and negative outcomes that reinforce the cycle.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy-based techniques are identified as the most effective ways to overcome procrastination. These methods focus on understanding the interplay among thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
Four strategies have been identified to disrupt the procrastination cycle: (1) Modifying the task or environment, (2) learning to dismiss rationalizations, (3) adjusting unhelpful core beliefs, and (4) cultivating the ability to tolerate discomfort through mindfulness meditation.
The likelihood of successfully changing procrastination habits hinges on three factors: (1) The willingness to change, (2) belief in the value of change, and (3) confidence in one's ability to enact change.
This article is an adaptation of the fourth audio lesson of Doer: the science-based guide to overcoming procrastination. For good! Discover the root cause of your procrastination and start mastering the skill of accomplishing important tasks by downloading "Doer" today!
