6 Science-Backed Ways You Can Stop Procrastinating

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Don’t you have something you should be doing right now?

Oh, wait—you’re procrastinating by reading internet articles, aren’t you? Well, you’ve come to the right place, because this particular article is going to show you just how to stop doing that.

A lasting solution to procrastination is hard to come by because the problem isn’t just psychological—it’s biological, and there’s a constant battle happening in your brain when you try to do something that you don’t exactly want to do.

The neocortex is a section of your brain that handles higher-order functions like spatial reasoning and language. This is the part that helps you make decisions based on long-term benefits—for example, that the benefits of going for a run today will benefit you later on.

But there’s another part of your brain that’s only concerned with what’s good for you right now, and that’s the limbic system. If there is more difficulty than immediate benefit, this part of your brain doesn’t want anything to do with it.

Unfortunately for us, the limbic system often wins out. But there ways you can give your neocortex a boost! To help you do that, let’s take a look at 6 science-backed ways you can stop procrastinating.

Alternate Large and Small Tasks

Your limbic system is the little brother that wants immediate gratification. Your neocortex is the older sister who reasons for your long-term good. To keep these two siblings from fighting, just satisfy both!

One way you can do this is by alternating long-term and short-term tasks. So, for example, if you’re finding yourself putting off that 12-page research paper, do something that takes no more than five minutes to accomplish. Clean your desk. Sweep the floor, put a load of laundry in the washer, or pay an online bill. Just do something, and finish it.

Succeeding at a small task will satisfy your limbic system’s craving for short-term results, leaving you free to listen to the reason of your neocortex.

Alternatively, you can break a large task up into small sections, taking a short break between each. This accomplishes a long-term goal through a series of short-term efforts. And because of what’s known as the Zeigarnik effect, once you start into your task, even in the smallest of ways, you’re more likely to finish it.

So embrace the power of threading small, five-minute tasks into your larger projects. It’s the surest way to kill procrastination.

Forgive Yourself

Did you know you can kill procrastination with kindness? It all starts with being able to forgive yourself.

We all procrastinate. Sometimes it hurts us, and can even be harmful to those we love when we put off important life events that affect other people.

It’s not surprising, then, that most of us feel some level of guilt for putting off important tasks. The problem, though, is that this guilt begets more procrastination!

Dr. Michael Wohl, director of the Betterment Lab at Carleton University in Ontario, Canada, has found that self-forgiveness can actually act as a cure for procrastination.

Wohl and his research team followed the progress of 134 undergrads as the students progressed through several rounds of mid-term exams, finding that those who were better able to forgive themselves for previous procrastination were better able to avoid it in the future.

“Forgiveness allows the individual to move past maladaptive behavior and focus on the upcoming examination,” Wohl’s study surmises. By not focusing on past mistakes, the students were better able to constructively approach their work the next time.

You can do the same, so be kind to yourself!

Change Your Brain

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The human brain loves new things. We’re wired to become more adaptive when we experience novelty—historically, we needed to be able to evaluate new things and experiences as either useful or harmful.

So go in search of some new music. Find pieces that really get you going, that make you feel motivated and excited about life. Now put that song on and start in on your task while the high is still strong. Keep doing this, and you’ll begin to associate pleasure with the beginning of a previously unpleasant task.

Congratulations, you’ve just taken advantage of your brain’s plasticity.

Plasticity simply refers to the brain’s ability to change over time, to develop your new habits through the formation of new neural paths.

And you don’t have to stick to music. Try performing the activity you’ve been putting off in a new place, or under different circumstances. Go to a coffee shop or a library or a park.

If you change your surroundings, it’s infinitely easier to change your habits, so get out of the house and break your procrastination with a little novelty.

Reward Yourself

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Your limbic system is a little kid yelling for candy, and it wants it now. So why not jam a fistful of chewing gum in its mouth and send it on its way?

A great way of destroying procrastination is to reward yourself for the work you do. Research shows that your brain will help you along if you’ve trained it to expect a reward—you’ll feel better, more motivated, and will be much less likely to procrastinate.

So how do you do this? Easy! Take advantage of your brain’s natural focus rhythm—don’t go more than twenty minutes without taking a short break. And when you take a break, give yourself a present, such as a sip of delicious coffee or a pleasant stare out of the window or a few moments of your favorite show.

Over time, your brain will associate the task with the reward, and your motivation will blast through any procrastination habits you might have.

Automate Tasks

One of the biggest reasons why we procrastinate is that we overload ourselves. After all, what’s more paralyzing than looking over a to-do list comprised of 130 bulleted items, complete with sub-headings?

Stop that.

In our modern world, there’s no excuse for not automating a number of daily tasks if you’re facing a procrastination problem. Have a ton of bills to pay? Sign up for automatic payments. Overwhelmed with cooking? Order delivery. Automate your savings account. Make the kids clean the house.

Outsourcing the things that you know you’re going to put off again and again isn’t lazy—it’s healthy. It frees you to focus on the things you actually enjoy, and leaves you with enough energy to blast through the things you don’t.

Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed with a weighty tome of a to-do list. Outsource, automate, and delegate, and you’ll soon find yourself unburdened by the tasks you have the hardest time starting.

Shift Your Perspective

The most fundamental change you can make in support of finally getting things done is to change the way you see these unpleasant tasks.

Try this. Instead of saying “I have to do this,” tell yourself that “I want to do this”. Focus on what you want to get out of the activity, not how hard or difficult it is.

For example, instead of saying, “I have to write this 1,000 word article on procrastination,” tell yourself that “I want to help my readers improve their lives”. Or instead of thinking “I have to clean the litter box,” think “I want my house to smell nice when people come over”.

This shift in the way you view your problematic activities can make starting tasks so much easier, and if you remember the benefits of the Zeigarnik Effect, you know that once you start, you’re probably going to finish.

So change that perspective and power through that task.