"Where duty is plain, delay is
dangerous."
1. Establish your priorities and let
nothing interfere with the execution of your most vital
tasks. Be constructively selective
in what you will do. To aid in your selection, keep in mind that it will
probably take longer to do most things than you estimate. Review your work
methods so that you can learn to get the job done faster and
easier.
2. Always plan your day the day before. Keep your
written, daily plan visible. It will rout procrastination.
3. Place your concentration on the matters that should be acted on
immediately, leaving less important ones for later. A general
guideline is that anything that will affect someone's pocketbook or welfare should be acted on
immediately.
4. When you start something, be determined to do it right the first
time and bring it to a finish. The old cliché "If you don't have
time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?" still applies.
Resist the temptation to leave a job unfinished. It takes more time to
re-familiarize yourself with a project than to complete it the first time
around.
5. Dive in and get completely involved once you've set your
priorities. Determine your most difficult job of the day and
don't do anything else until it is complete. Only decisive action can overcome
procrastination.
6. Work out a self-reminder system. Make it a
practice to write out your daily/weekly objectives and check off each one as it
is accomplished. To help keep motivation high, many successful people have signs
in their offices such as "When?" or "Do It Now!"
7. Work toward developing your knowledge and skills.
People tend to focus on doing what they already do best. If you are
procrastinating in one area of the job, it may be a sign that you are unsure of
yourself. By developing and applying new knowledge and skills, you build
confidence and overcome your resistance to taking action.
8. Discipline yourself in little things. Another
natural tendency is to do the easier things rather than the hard ones that are
necessary for success. To counteract this tendency, discipline yourself to do
something difficult each day. It may be something as simple as getting up a
little earlier or making one more appointment interview.
9. Decide what tasks you will not tackle. While
setting priorities is essential, it's just as important to set "non-priority
items" deciding what tasks are not essential and sticking to that decision. You
can use A, B, C priorities: A. Must do. B. Nice to do. C. Non-priority item.
10. Beware of perfectionism. If you tend to be a
perfectionist, keep in mind that even by your standards you need to do some jobs
"quick and dirty."
