Is procrastination stealing your valuable time? Find out how to stop stalling and just get things done

Do you find yourself waiting until the last minute to finish a critical document? Do you schedule and announce meetings just in the nick of time? Do you take work home at the weekends, every weekend?

If so, procrastination may be sneaking into your life, stealing valuable time and eroding your productivity.

Seductive rewards
Most of us stall to varying degrees because procrastination is so seductive: Short-term positive rewards come from putting things off. When you have too many things to do, deciding not to do any of them can reduce your immediate tension and stress. If you are lucky, maybe they will go away or someone else will do them.

Procrastinating can also be exciting: It causes crises and the adrenalin rush that goes along with them. You are pitting yourself against the odds, and gambling that not only will you win out over stress, fear, hunger and fatigue, but that the post will arrive on time, the copier will not break, the other person is not off sick and the tyre will not go flat as you race to your meeting. When you make it, you probably feel high and slightly euphoric. These are intense feelings, much more so than the quiet, calm satisfaction produced when the project is completed early.

Waiting until the last minute to start a difficult task can also be used as a defence for poor performance. You can always claim that it would have been better had there been more time.

But once delay becomes a habit, it undermines your ability to function effectively. In trying to overcome procrastination, do not decide all at once that you will never do it again. Be reasonable and fair to yourself: the habit may have become so automatic that you don't realise all the ways you talk yourself out of getting started.

1. Try to think of large, complicated or time-consuming project as a series of small, manageable parts. Smaller tasks are attractive because they are short, easy and produce immediate gratification. Keep in mind that all projects, no matter how massive, are only a series of small items reassembled.
2. Make a voluntary commitment to someone else. Allowing others to become involved in your efforts by reviewing your progress, helping you set deadlines or evaluating your results can be very helpful. Your concerns, fears and anxieties become secondary to fulfilling the expectations of the people you respect and trust.
3. Reward yourself for good behaviour. Punishing yourself for slacking is not nearly as effective. Reward yourself at milestones in the process, not just at the completion. Rewards can be as simple as reading for pleasure, relaxing, visiting friends, or going out to dinner - as long as they are things you like to do. If you regularly work overtime, go home on time, or take a lunch break instead of eating in a rush at your desk.
4. When you find yourself blocked, ask yourself: 'Is there anything, no matter how small, that I am willing to do?' When you find that small thing, you are no longer procrastinating.