Accountability is overrated in my opinion. Most often, knowing I’m accountable for something only adds to the anxiety that crops up when I procrastinate on important things. (Yes I posted this in response to a commenter’s comment today, but I had more so say…) Sometimes, in fact, it acts as another hurdle that must be overcome before I’ll actually do something.

For many people, having a schedule is a way of being accountable to oneself for how one spends one’s time. I’ve fallen into that trap lots of times. I think I’ve finally gotten past that now.

I’ve had the most success not procrastinating when I do away with a schedule altogether. An example of this is my procrastination with my job. I hated going when I felt like I needed to be working on projects that I had at home. I had a schedule and I was working (quite efficiently) on getting these things done. But every time I had to stop so that I could go to the office, or work from home (I do both weekly), I would freeze up and not want to go to work.

One day a few weeks ago, I decided I couldn’t keep this up. I nixed the schedule, told myself that my “home” work wasn’t that important and that I needed a life. The very next Monday, I found myself doing housework I had for months been putting off/doing/putting off again.

It’s been a little over three weeks, and I’m into a fairly laid back routine, and I’ve not has as clean a house and clean laundry in years! I’m wowed by this change. No kidding.

What was even more exciting was that going to work that first week wasn’t a chore. I actually enjoyed getting out of the house on the day I went into the office and I spent an extra 3 hours there that evening catching up some stuff that needed to be done.

It’s been several weeks now, and I’m feeling much more at peace with my job, and I’ve actually gotten plenty of work done on my “home” projects–more than I expected and enough to feel like I’m getting things done.

So, my verdict? Maybe accountability and scheduling your time is not the solution at all. Maybe it’s part of the problem.

One sneaky way to not procrastinate is to slip in work in small increments, doing the work when you feel like doing it instead of waiting until you have to do it.

Over on the Remote Access Computer site, I give tips and information about how I use remote access computer software to work from home. I especially like doing this because I can work extra when I feel like working but I can cut back when I really don’t want to work.

This is also very effective for household work. If you have an urge to clean your bathtubs, but your floors really need picking up, do the tub anyway.

This is actually just a way of using procrastination effectively. Stuff is getting done, and sometimes that’s just as important as getting any specific thing done. There are always going to be days where you’re not going to want to do something that probably needs to be done, but don’t take that as an excuse to go watch TV. At least if you do something else, you’ll have done something!

This tip isn’t for everyone of course, because you need to be the kind of person who actually wants to do something besides watch TV on a regular basis.

But if you can use it, this is a powerful method of beating the urge to procrastinate.

Most procrastinators (or those that I know) don’t have problems planning out their days, their lives, or their goals. I set goals to paper several times a week. I also ignore those goals most days, because they’re boring. I don’t want to do most of the stuff on my to-do lists, whether I written those to-dos on paper or on an imaginary list in my head. Why don’t I want to do them? Because, as I said before, they’re boring.

That’s never been more clear to me than after Continue reading this article »

Sometimes I really feel like I have it all together. Sometimes though I feel like I’m still floundering in the depths of procrastination. If you stop by this site often enough, you’ll probably realize quickly that my post topics follow along that pattern.

Lately, I’ve been suffering from the fallout of following my own advice a little too closely. I still believe 100% that you have to find your passion if you want to find a true path out of perpetual procrastination. However, anything can be taken too far, and over the past six months, I’ve probably taken my passion too far. Continue reading this article »

“…the question is not how to avoid procrastination, but how to procrastinate well.” — Paul Graham

I’ve yet to find a better quote that addresses procrastination. All procrastination isn’t bad, and the reason I know this is because everyone procrastinates. We procrastinate on any number of tasks on any given day. Not everything can be started, worked on, or finished in any one hour, day, or moment.

We make choices.

Our choices define what type of procrastinators we are. Continue reading this article »

There are many crutches I use when I’m avoiding work that also help me avoid feeling guilty about not accomplishing my goals.

For years, I’ve been using procrastination in this way to get things done.

I love to learn. I know that doesn’t sound like something I should limit, but more often than I’d like, I procrastinate by learning something new. These things that I learn are usually important skills for the work I do (and for the hobbies I pursue).

However, I can spend 70%-80% of my day looking for and reading information online about whatever it is I’m working on. Continue reading this article »

Here are some resources to help you learn about a technique for dealing with procrastination called Structured Procrastination. This method uses your ability/desire to fool yourself as a stepping stone to  do what needs done. It’s definitely one of the more useful methods I’ve come across. Continue reading this article »

Most people aren’t going to want to hear this, but here goes. You can’t change. You can try. Just don’t expect it to work out.

When I was younger, I used to believe that people could change everything about themselves if they just tried. After years of watching the people around me, some whom I love very much, and others who are just acquaintances, not to mention all that I know about myself, I’ve concluded that people can’t change those things about themselves that make them who they are—the procrastinator, the excitable talker, the whiner. You see, these characteristics are driven by personality traits. As a procrastinator, every time you complete a goal or task, you’ve overcome procrastination—but you’re still a procrastinator, otherwise you wouldn’t have to work to overcome procrastination. You haven’t changed. You’ve only changed an event. Continue reading this article »

There used to be a site here. I mean, things still look the same, but there’s something significant missing.

All the old posts are gone.

I changed hosts—not exactly true—I didn’t change hosts so much as I changed accounts under which I was hosting this account, and in the change-over I needed to restore my backup for this site’s database.

I procrastinated. In fact, I’m still procrastinating. I have the backup and I could restore it, if I wanted to. But… it’s work, and frankly I’m not sure it’s worth the effort. My old posts weren’t all that good anyway.

How many times can I tell the world that I’m about to start posting regularly before they start to think I’m just a big fat liar?

Procrastination is an insidious disease of the psyche. I will probably never overcome my procrastinating ways, but I’m tired of trying.

I’ve found a better way. Continue reading this article »