5 Secrets That Will Break Your Procrastination Habit

Several weeks ago, I spoke to an organization in my local area. At the end of my presentation, I offered the audience members a one time only special -- if they e-mailed me that day, I would send them a free copy of my ebook on procrastination prevention, One Moment in Time. I emphasized the fact that they had to e-mail me that day for the offer to be valid. 

Several people sent e-mails immediately. One lady approached me afterwards and said: “Eric, I have a serious problem with procrastination, so I will e-mail you sometime tomorrow to get your ebook!” 

This encounter inspired me to share with you my five secrets to overcoming procrastination. They are listed under the following acronym: “G.R.E.A.T” I chose this acronym because you will feel GREAT after implementing these techniques. 

1. (G) Gratitude -- Dedicate the first thirty minutes of your day to making a thank youlist and reflecting on everything in your life for which you are grateful. I have discovered that doing this makes you feel better. When you feel better, you tend to be more proactive and less likely to procrastinate.


2. (R) Recognize – By recognize I mean recognize your power times. We each have a genetic clock that allows our energy to peak at certain times of the day. For example, I am a morning person because early in the morning is the time of day when I have the most energy. 
   
   The key to success is to schedule your highest priority activities during the times of day that you have the most energy. If you attempt to complete a high priority task when you have low energy levels, you will be more likely to procrastinate.


3. (E) Exercise -- According to the National Institute of Health Statistics, the higher a person’s income, the more likely they are to have a regular exercise routine. Habitual exercise produces endorphins in the body that give you the feeling of a “natural high”. As previously stated, the better you feel, the more proactive you will be.


4. (A) Automation – This is the mentality of always looking for ways to free yourself from activities that take time away from your priorities. If you delegate those tasks that are necessary but of low priority, you have an automation mindset. Utilizing a virtual assistant to handle administrative tasks is a great example of this mind set.


5. (T) Task Lists – Get in the habit of making a list at the end of the day of your priorities for the following day. I have found that this helps me to sleep better at night because once I put the tasks on paper, my mind is clear. You will wake up with a game plan, instead of hitting the snooze button.

So there you have it. If you implement the five tips just mentioned, you will maximize your time, minimize your stress, and break the habit of procrastination. Have a G.R.E.A.T day! 

Sincerely,
Eric M. Twiggs
Your Procrastination Prevention Partner

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What Drives You?

I thought that I had the right focus, but I was wrong. After graduating from college, my ultimate goal was to make as much money as possible. Seven years after graduation, I had achieved my objective. 

I was a 29 year old Silver BMW driving executive of a national automotive service chain, with 500 employees that reported to me. We had just won an award for having the most profitable District in the entire organization. I had made it to the top of the corporate ladder. 

One morning while driving my BMW, I happened to catch a glimpse of myself in the rear view mirror. The person that I saw looking back at me was someone that dreaded the idea of going into the office! 

How could this be? I was making more money at age 29 than my father ever made, and I had the car to prove it. Suddenly, I remembered the following quote from the Author Michael Josephson: “It’s not what you drive, it’s what drives you!” 

What do you see when you look in the mirror? Do you dread the idea of going to your job or business each morning? Unfortunately, many people that I know are simply “going through the motions”. This lack of passion is a root cause of procrastination. The following test can help you determine if you are procrastinating because of a lack of passion for what you are doing:

Snooze Button Test
In the morning, if you find yourself hitting the SNOOZE button on your alarm clock at least two times before waking, you are not positioned in your passion. Hitting snooze, is your way of procrastinating because you are not looking forward to starting the day. 

Think about it, if you knew that you were about to do something that you were born to do, you would not delay getting started. This snooze button test can help you to determine if you are in the right business or line of work. 

The question becomes, how do you determine what drives you so that you are not failing the snooze button test? Keep reading and you learn the three questions that will help you clarify your passions: 

The Three Questions

1. What are you passionate about?

2. What does success mean to you?

3. If you could make a difference for anyone or any cause, what would that difference be? 

Answering these questions made me realize that I felt the most passion when I was helping business executives and delivering speeches. Since I have come to his realization, doors have opened for me to do what I love. Today, I never have a morning where I dread the idea of doing what I do.

So there you have it. Whether you drive a Hummer or a “Hooptie”, asking yourself the three questions will help you to pass the snooze button test and drive you away from procrastination! 

What drives you? 

Sincerely,
Eric M. Twiggs
Your Procrastination Prevention Partner

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What Scares You?

“If you want something that you have never had, you must be willing to do something that you have never done.”

Thomas Jefferson

In 1998 actress Helen Hunt had reached the very top of the acting profession. She won the highly coveted Oscar for her role in the movie As Good As It Gets. She was asked by a reporter, what she planned to do for her next role. While her answer surprised me, it also helped me realize why she reached the top. She said, “I will choose the role that scares me the most." 

You Validate What You Fail to Confront
Fear is at the root of procrastination. I have discovered that people are most afraid of the unknown territory. The problem is that your goals and dreams reside at the end of the unknown path. You must go down the unfamiliar road to get there! 

For example, everyone would be a millionaire if the requirement was doing what you have always done. What separates the self-made millionaire from everyone else is her willingness to do the uncomfortable. She may be afraid but she faces her fears. Once a fear is confronted, it is no longer unknown. 

What scares you? Is it the thought of speaking in public? Is it the idea of making cold calls to generate sales? Could be the prospect of starting your own business? As you continue to read, I will teach you a technique that will help you face your fear. 

Practice Under Pressure
If you are able to practice in an environment that simulates the risk, you can confront the unknown. For example, back when I was studying karate, I always questioned if what I was learning would apply in a real self-defense situation. Initially, I participated in safe sparring sessions with my friends at the school, but the thought of sparring in an unknown environment scared me. 

To overcome this fear, I entered tournaments against competitors that I did not know at locations with which I was unfamiliar. To my surprise, I won more matches than I lost, and gained an understanding of how I would respond under real pressure. By facing my fear, it was no longer and unknown. 

Anytime I feel anxiety about delivering a big speech, I reflect on my karate experience with the knowledge that I can respond under pressure. What are some ways that you can practice? Below are some scenarios based on the most common fears that I mentioned earlier:

Starting a Business
Before launching out on your own, get a job in the industry that interests you. For example, if you want to open your own restaurant, get a job working at a restaurant so you can understand how they operate, the challenges of owning one, and practice interacting with customers. This would give you valuable experience, and make entrepreneurship less of an unknown. 

Public Speaking
Join an organization such as Toastmasters International where you can practice your speeches in a safe environment. The average club has about 20 members, so you can gain experience speaking in front of a group. You will have more confidence when making a presentation at work because you have already confronted your fears at Toastmasters. 

Cold Calling
Set a minimum goal of how many calls you will make each day and stick to it. Start with an achievable number like three per day in the beginning. If you stay with your plan, your ability will improve and you will find the calls easier to do. The key is to place more focus in completing the three calls each day than on the result of the calls. In 30 days you will have made at least 60 calls. You will be more proficient at call 60 than on the first call.

So there you have it. Doing the thing you fear is a key step to achieving your goals and dreams. If you commit to confrontation, you will be like Helen Hunt and look the part! 

Sincerely,
Eric M Twiggs
Your Procrastination Prevention Partner

PS. To get additional information on how to achieve your goals and dreams, download my ebook. 

Get in the Fast Lane to Achieve Your Goals in Life

“If you can see it, you can be it. If you can view it, you can do it. Vision is the first step to victory”

The ultimate goal of every college basketball team is to win the NCAA championship. When a team accomplishes its goal, players celebrate by cutting down the basketball nets. This is a tradition that has become symbolic of success. In 1983, Coach Jim Valvano of North Carolina State put a different twist on this trend. 

At the beginning of his tenure, NC State was a struggling program that had never won the big prize. There was no reason for the players to believe that they could do it. During his very first practice, Valvano told his team that they would win the championship that year. This idea seemed so ridiculous that several of the players laughed to themselves. 

After practice was over, Valvano did something that seemed to take ridiculous to a new level. He had his players cut down the nets in there own gym, so that they could see and feel what it was like to celebrate a championship victory. They continued this habit throughout the ‘83 season, which ended with NC State shocking the world by winning the NCAA championship! 

During the post game interviews, the players admitted that the exercise of practicing their victory celebration made them believe that they could do it. In their minds, they saw themselves succeeding, so when it happened it was like deja vu! Now, what does this have to do with you? 

Is Your Glass Half Full?
Like the 83’ team, your present condition is a direct result of your past thoughts.  Studies show that with all things being equal, and optimist will out perform a pessimist in a job or business situation by as much as 50%. The reason for this is the fact that the thoughts that you dwell on become your reality. 

In other words, having habitual thoughts of fear and doubt is the equivalent of praying for what you don’t want! The question becomes, how can you use the power of visualization to put you in the fast lane to achieving your goals in life? 

Write Out Your Perfect Day
Writing out your perfect day in detail will help to create a strong visual picture in your mind. The following outline will assist you in putting your perfect day on paper:

1. Who is present?
2. What specific goal do you accomplish?
3. How Do You Feel?
4. What do you do to celebrate the accomplishment of this goal?

The goal should be achievable, but at the same time, cause you to stretch beyond your current grasp. If you commit to this exercise, you will wake up in your prefect day and put yourself in the fast lane to the achievement of your goals. I congratulate you in advance as you cut down the nets! 

Sincerely,
Eric M Twiggs
Your Procrastination Prevention Partner

PS. For additional information on how to achieve you goals in life, download my ebook, One Moment in Time. 

Your Failure is Not Fatal

“Failure is not fatal, but a failure to change might be.”

John Wooden

Years ago, there was a young man named Ron who graduated from College with the goal of becoming the manager of a major department store in his home town. He was a successful college athlete, so he figured that he would apply for the open Sporting Goods Department Manager position. He left the interview with a good feeling about his chances of getting hired. 

Later that week he received a call from the hiring manager letting him know that he did not get the job. Ron was devastated. He told his mother what happened and she said, “Well son, maybe there is another plan for your life.” 

As it turns out, the plan was bigger than either of them could have imagined. The young man in the story is Ronald Reagan and many historians believe that, had he gotten the position he was seeking, he many have never become President. His failure was not fatal. 

“The faster you let it go, the faster you grow.”
Are you still holding on to a failure from your past? As your Procrastination Prevention Partner, I have discovered that an incorrect perspective on failure is one of the main causes of procrastination. Selling professionals with a goal of making six figures delay making their sales calls because a previous transaction did not go as planned. 

Business owners, who complain about not having any free time, refuse to hire their replacement because they remember the bad hiring decision they made in the past. The selling professional and business owner have one thing in common: their actions do not align with their aspirations because of how they view their failures. So how do you move forward and achieve your goals in spite of your painful past? 

Lessons Learned List
I have developed a habit of making a “lessons learned list” whenever I experience a setback. I use the memo app on my phone to list everything that I learned from the experience. The list of positive benefits is always longer than I expect. I can attribute many of my current successes to this process. 

For example, after some of my keynote speeches, people come up to me and say, “Eric, I am terrified at the thought of public speaking, but you are a natural.” The only reason I appear to be a natural is because of what I have learned from my many failures. The engagements that did not go as planned gave me the necessary experience for future achievement. Failure is the secret to my success! 

Just like Ronald Regan, you can use failure as a stepping stone to greatness. If you commit to making a lessons learned list, you will have the right perspective on your pain. You may not get an airport named after you, but you can still fly to the next level! 

Sincerely, 
Eric M. Twiggs
Your Procrastination Prevention Partner

PS. For additional information on how to overcome procrastination, download my ebook.