Tips for the Procrastinating Entrepreneur
Procrastination and business don’t mix – and you’ve realized that. But, how do you break one of those habits that the rest of the world is still struggling to break too? Procrastination affects not just your professional life, but your personal life too. While sometimes it is innocent to put things off, other times it can be detrimental. To help get your business off to a better jumpstart this year, you need to tackle your procrastination habits once and for all.
Break Down One Large To-Do Into Mini Tasks
One of the biggest reasons people procrastinate is because of the task at hand – it’s just too big to tackle and the sheer size of it can make you feel overwhelmed. Instead of taking on a goal or a task by itself, see how you can break it down into small, easier-to-achieve tasks. Everything can be broken down in some way, so don’t assume it can’t.
For example, your goal for the week was to setup your new accounting software. Instead of having your goal “new accounting software,” you can add sub tasks like:
- Sign up for accounting
- Import bank transactions
- Categorize bank transactions
- Set up rules
- Setup invoices and estimates
Each of these is easy to achieve, takes only a few minutes and gives you that sense of accomplishment you need to keep going. After all, who doesn’t like to check things off?
Set Deadlines
You can eliminate the urge to procrastinate just by setting hard deadlines for yourself – and make sure the deadline is a day or two before it’s needed. Be realistic when setting these deadlines. If a project will take a week, don’t try to set your goal for five days out.
To set realistic, effective deadlines, you should first estimate (realistically) how long it will take to complete something. Ask yourself how many hours it will take, then write it down. Start tracking how long it really takes so that when you set those same deadlines in the future, you can be more realistic about your deadlines.
Create a Productive Environment
Most entrepreneurs struggle with achieving their goals because they aren’t in a work-like environment. If your business operates out of your home, you’re going to have distractions – from the TV calling your name to children, pets and just the urge to rest.
Set a designated work area inside your home and stick to it. Never work in areas full of distractions. By eliminating distractions and creating a work environment, you can stay on task.
Most of us here at Revuezzle work from home, but we have private offices set aside in our homes that are strictly for work – so that we can keep on task.
Being productive doesn’t come naturally for all of us and there are highly successful entrepreneurs to this day that struggle with staying on task. But, the good news is if you stay organized and stick to a routine that keeps you motivated, you too can be successful and stop missing those critical deadlines.
Don’t forget to pick up more useful tips about improving your business or find products that boost your business’s professionalism by following our blogs. From business cloud storage to web hosting and virtual phone systems, we’ve got a few tricks up our sleeves to keep you on task for 2016.
