我很拖拉，我一直都这样。这是性格缺陷，我承认。我试过各种方法想克服这个习惯：列出要做的事情的清单、邮件提醒以及各种各样列表之类的方法，但是只有一件事管用，那就是：现在就做。
我知道这一点非常清楚，但是许多人都意识不到这个最基本的技能。并不是我们不知道我们现在得把事情做好，而是我们已经忘了该怎么做好。以下是我正在让自己现在开始做事的几个技巧：
I am a procrastinator. I always have been. It's a character flaw, and I admit it. I've tried all sorts of things to beat the habit — Getting Things Done, e-mail reminders, dozens of list systems — but the only thing that seems to work is to: Do it now.
This is blindingly obvious, I know, but many people lose sight of this fundamental skill. It's not that we don't know that we should do things now; it's that we've forgotten how. Here are some techniques I've been using to try to force myself to get to now:
Set aside blocks of time to do things. When I was talking with my wellness coach earlier this year, she asked me why I didn't exercise more often. "I don't have the time," I said. "Something always comes up." She wasn't impressed. "J.D.," she said, "You have to make time. Make an appointment with yourself to run or to go for a bike ride." The same principle applies to other things you might procrastinate.
Kris and I used to schedule a block of time on Saturday morning specifically to clean the house. Each week we'd tackle a different room. If we didn't do this, I'd just put it off for weeks (or months). Pick an hour a day to get things done.
If it comes to mind, then do it. Often I'll be sitting on the back porch reading a book, and it will occur to me that some chore needs to be done — pruning the laurel hedge, for example. "I need to write that down so I can remember it," I tell myself. Wrong! What usually happens is that I forget to write it down, and even if I do, I just look at the list and procrastinate for weeks on end. The best move is to actually do the chore when I think of it. (Assuming, of course, that I have the time at that moment. Which I usually do.)
Use a timer to bring you back to reality. Part of the reason I procrastinate is that I have a rich mental life. This is just a flowery way of saying that I'm a daydreamer. I'm always lost in thought. One way to keep on track is to use a timer. I use the Ultrak Jumbo Countdown Timer, but not as often as I should. I set it for 48 minutes. When it goes off, it serves as an instant reality check: Am I doing what I'm supposed to be doing?
Do not multitask. Oh, how I love multitasking. "I'm great at doing many things at once," I told Kris once. She gave me one of those looks. "No, you're not," she said. "You're great at starting many things at once, but you never actually do any of them." Ouch! But she's right. In order for me to get something done, I need to focus my attention on it. Trying to do several things at once is a sure way to be sure they'll all be unfinished tomorrow.
Modify your environment to eliminate distractions
.Distractions feed procrastination. How many of these have you told yourself: "I'll just check e-mail one more time before I start.","I'll go for a walk after I finish reading this magazine.","I can paint the house next weekend. I want to watch the Seahawks game today."
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