I was thinking about what to do for my email marketing update and procrastination came to me, together with with several recent conversations with some friends, potential clients, clients and heck, even myself! Now, I don’t claim to be a time management pro like my pal Jackie Harder, and she is amazing by the way, but it’s always so much easier looking in from the outside or looking back. So, I thought that others could benefit from this same topic and have made it a blog… so let’s get to it!
Do you ever procrastinate so long on something because you know it will take forever to do and just knowing that makes you dread doing it… so you don’t? (me too)
Does that thing you keep procrastinating about stress you out by not doing it but you still put it aside? (yep, me too)
Do you know that you could advance to something else, learn something from it or feel relieved to be done with it when you do? (omg, yes, me too)
Did you answer YES? (I know I did)
If you answered yes to any or all of those (admit it, you know you did)… can you tell me…..WHY ARE YOU STALLING? Why are you impeding upon your success? Why do you keep putting it off knowing it won’t do itself or knowing you HAVE to do it eventually? Is it fear that is getting the best of you? Is it overwhelm? Is setting it aside killing all of those feelings? NO, you know it isn’t! Let that sink in for a moment….
You aren’t alone!
Now that it has set in, you don’t suck… just know, you aren’t alone. I started my business just over 3 years ago 
and hemmed and hawed over my website. It just HAD to be perfect. I debated over just about every single piece of it and got to the point, just freaken do it and be done, then move on knowing I can come back to the finished product at ANY time. It’s not the best, but decided it had to be done to move on, and I did. Now, 3 years later I am working on a fresher look.
I did the same thing with my email list because it was a PIA (pain in the a$$) and I didn’t want to deal with it. Sure, I could figure it out but I just “didn’t wanna”. Did you hear that pouty Kristen with the whinny voice? Yep, that was me. I think it was about a year later I finally started with the simple opt-in box on my website. Then I created my opt-in, then the pop ups.. and I don’t have a ton on the list, but I bet I would have more than I do right now had I started a year earlier.
I have friends, clients and potential clients doing the very thing. Folks, you are not alone. And lastly, if you are one of the lucky folks who bought into my Facebook Video Series and still haven’t finished the videos… get to it folks.. you will learn so much and can begin working on your Facebook business page right now, why are you waiting?
Just Do It – Why Are You Procrastinating? Click To TweetYou need to make the time for needs to be done… and if it is for your business, whatever it is.. you need to determine what is going to benefit your business most and just get er done!
Why do we procrastinate?
Why do we procrastinate and put things off KNOWING that we will feel better after it’s started or done? Why do we do this knowing we will learn something from it? Why do we do this knowing that it won’t automatically be done for us or go away? Why do we do this knowing it will still take the same amount of time when we finally get around to it? Why do we do this knowing it is stressing us out MORE and LONGER?
I can’t speak for you, but I know my persona and I like to check things off. So, me completing 10 little worthless things seems to make me feel better than 1 big worthwhile thing. I know, it doesn’t make sense. I know that it stresses me out longer so I make a point to check it off… but know, I still push it off for a little while and then give myself a wake up call and get it done.
It’s your turn – Get off your A$$
So…. I am telling you… please…GET OFF YOUR REAR and do those things you dread, ONLY if they are essential to your business. If it wasn’t meant to be done or isn’t needed, get it off your list and put it on the… Do If I Want To Do list. We all have the same number of hours in a day, same number of days in a week and we ALL have to make choices about what is important for us. So, take those things, determine what is most important, really more important and just do them.
If there is anything that I offer that could help you, help alleviate your stress, take off your Must To-Do list, please contact me RIGHT AWAY, don’t procrastinate! lol
~Kristen
Ahhh yes. The time is now. I’m always glad I get things done sooner rather than later.
Yep… so true Christy and I am there with you.
Sometimes I just have to realize that I can’t do it all and I don’t have to. Many times the things I procrastinate on are things that I think I should be doing when I really shouldn’t. Learning to know the difference is crucial.
Nope you don’t Carol so outsource or put it on a list to do when you want to! 🙂
I’m good at procrastinating too. It never fails- I can always find something more interesting, more creative and more enticing to do than what must be done. Ugh. And the email list thing is a chore for me too. Been dragging my feet. That’s going to change after we get back from vacation.
Yep… same here Jennifer… I can find something easier to get done and off the list/plate or find something that isn’t meaningful to do… you know, FB chat and such. lmao GET ON THAT EMAIL list though.. seriously!
Yes! I totally agree. I was able to finish training course tasks yesterday and it felt great. Now on to finding that theme I want to use for my site.
OMG Sabrina, I soooo know the feeling, finishing up your training course. SAME HERE!
This is perfect for me right now at this moment. There things that I have to do for my business and the excitement isn’t there. It is time to just do.
Either that, Renee, or don’t do it… maybe it wasn’t meant to be done… or meant to be done, by YOU.
I don’t really think of myself as a procrastinator but occasionally I do put things off and when I really think about it, the reason is sometimes fear. Other times I know it’s going to become an ongoing thing that I’m not prepared to sacrifice the time for, just yet. Sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference.
Yea, me neither Tami, sometimes I just don’t WANT to do it and that is okay too. I agree, there are differences and sometimes it is a fine line.
Ahah, this is so just me too…I always push the things forward…thinking to do them further on. 😮 🙂
Not just you Kata, we are all there with you.
thanks for the kick in the you know where. I answered yes to everyone of your questions! I know that when I do hunker down and start the task.. and maybe even finish it sooner than I thought… I ALWAYS feel so good about myself. So here I go to tackle one of those tasks!
Yes Alene, happy to oblige with the foot in the rear. lol I had to answer yes to all questions too, you aren’t alone. 😉
Thanks for the shout-out, Kristen. There are so many ways we sabotage ourselves and mostly it’s because we’re afraid. I like to tell my time management clients to break the bigs into littles…and celebrate every little victory along the way. And BTW, all your littles should feed into your bigs. Know where you’re going!
You are quite welcome Jackie and so right, of course… break up the bigs into littles and celebrate along the way. Woot woot!
Thanks for the help in getting us off our bums! Time to get rolling!
Yes ma’am.. get rolling Reba
A big thing that seems to stop me is the amount of money it is going to cost, vs. my intuition on what the return will be. There are always lots of things to spend our money on and I’m in a place now where I am reassessing what excites me, what I want to invest my time in and then what I need to do to make that fly. As we all know, being in action all the time can end up being just spinning our wheels. If someone is conscious they are procrastinating, then I agree with you Kristen, it’s time to get in action. Until then, I think it is okay to sit tight and wait and see…
I think that is a totally different issue Beverley and you are right… when you are debating on whether or not to do something, hold off if the return isn’t worth the project.
Great points! I tend to work too long at one job until it is completely done and put off other jobs. Hard to decide when a job is “done”. Sometimes we just have to declare it “done”.
Oh… wow.. so you are unique.. most of us check off the little easier things. Good on you Robin!
yes! YES! YEEEESSSS! I work with clients all of the time who are guilty guilty guilty…. I love a checklist, too! Even if it is one big task, I’ll write a list of all the tasks I need to do to complete that ONE task! 🙂 Good info!
Yep Erin, right there with you… I have my daily to dos and then a list of stuff that I need to do or get done in free time. When those things sit there for too long, they get deleted as they were never important enough to stay there.
Awesome post Kristen THANK YOU for making me realize that I just need to get off of my ass and stop putting the things that I need to do for my business on hold 🙂 What the heck am I waiting for lol Of course there are way too many distractions as well……FOCUS is key! I know this 🙂 I am also working on a daily to do list so I can do the things I need to do to build my business.
Great share and awesome tips on how to stop procrastinating 🙂
I changed up my to-do list too and made sure I am doing the important things first each day. Great job Joan.
AMEN! I love your article and can relate to procrastination (I guess we all can – lol). When I heard that procrastination is when we vibrate energetically with ‘delay’, I shifted my thoughts and work hard to JUST DO IT!
Yes Tandy, we ALL can… and you are so right… work hard and just get it done!
Love this article. Sabotage is a better word for me than procrastinate. I think I have so many tasks that I get lost. Just when I get ready to begin to create my webinar my website acts up or my bookkeeping becomes an issue. I have several of your blogs bookmarked and with all the great information you provide, I’m confident I will get out of the weeds! Thanks Kristen.
That is true too Candess, we, as biz owners sabotage our own success by allowing for things that aren’t necessary to take control. Hope you can get out of the weeds, let me know if you need help.
Yes! I do this with invoicing and it doesn’t even take that long. Once I start it’s done super quickly.
I use an invoicing system that does all regular stuff automatically, love it Sonya
It’s nice to know that most of us are good procrastinators. I undertake too many projects and then can’t find the time to word on them all. I get one big thing, finished and then I’m way behind on other things. I’m learning to say no to all those enticing email offers and just focus on one thing at a time. Love you A$$ visuall.
Oh yes… I feel you… I have such high aspirations to do soooo much Joyce and yep, the same thing happens. Hang in there and glad you love my image! lol
I needed this kick in the butt this morning! Monday mornings after fall break breed procrastination.
Oh yes Cyndi, I can relate
Kristen,
A great article on Procrastination and It can easy to stay stuck in the same spot, but very uncomfortable for me to be in a place like this. IN this type of complacently I try to perform another task that would be out of my comfort zone so I can break through it.
Lori English
So very true Lori and you are not alone… we all get there.