Start With ‘Why?’ To Conquer Procrastination and Write More
By: Markus Skårnes
Tags: How To Write More, Writing Tips, Writing, Procrastination, Writers Life

Start With ‘Why?’ To Conquer Procrastination and Write More

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

Do you ever put off writing until the last second? It’s easy to procrastinate by finding something else you need to do. Procrastination can become so ingrained as a habit that you start identifying as a procrastinator.

If you are a procrastinator, you’re probably not as productive as you could be. Think about the last writing idea you had. How long did it take you to start writing it? If you have a habit of distracting yourself with other activities, you’re missing out on a lot of writing.

There are many ways to fight procrastination. However, you won’t get far if you don’t get to the roots of why you procrastinate. Productivity tricks won’t help much if you don’t deal with the underlying cause of your habit first. Procrastination is the symptom, not the cause.

Reasons for procrastination and what to do about them

There are many possible causes of procrastination. It could be the task itself, your outlook on life, your priorities, or a personality trait. If you take some time to consider why you procrastinate, conquering it will be easier. Your solution needs to take the underlying issue into account.

You’re a perfectionist who’s afraid of failure

If you postpone writing because you know deep down that it won’t be perfect, you can deal with that. Having high standards for yourself isn’t necessarily bad, but your writing will never be perfect. To become better and reach your high standards, you need to finish things.

Remember that your self-worth is not defined by what you write. You are more than what you achieve. Writing is a small part of your identity, and you don’t need to write great things to matter.

Try channeling your high expectations into your process rather than the result. Work on perfecting your writing routine and writing habits instead of thinking only about your output.

What you have to write is boring or uninteresting

Sometimes we need to write things that aren’t interesting or fun to write. It’s tempting to do something fun instead of what’s necessary. When you know that you tend to postpone tedious tasks, you can deal with this in a couple of ways.

One way is to accept that you will procrastinate and account for it by planning to do more and start earlier than you need. By overcompensating for your procrastination, you could end up doing more than someone who doesn’t procrastinate.

Another solution is to get your most boring tasks out of the way first thing in the morning. Don’t give them time to get you down. Deal with the worst part of your day first, and the rest of your day will seem better in comparison. For example, if you hate editing, start your day with that. Then you get to have fun with the creative part of writing later.

Or, you can do the boring tasks when you’ve run out of steam anyway. You get to work on what you care about when you have energy, and then you can struggle through tasks that would be tedious regardless. With this approach, it can be hard to motivate yourself to get started. It might work best for people with a good deal of willpower.

The best choice for you depends on what kind of person you are. Do you find it easy to start your workday with something tough, or is it better to save it for later? Try different approaches and see what works for you.

You feel overwhelmed and don’t know where to start

As writers, it’s easy to get a ton of ideas and take on many projects, only to feel overwhelmed by it all. You need to outline, research, write, edit, pitch, and a bunch of other tasks. It’s often hard to know where to start.

Try breaking everything into smaller tasks. Instead of thinking about writing a whole article, start by coming up with a topic and title. When you’ve done that, focus on writing an introduction. Then write subheadings. Each of these tasks doesn’t seem like a lot, but you'll get a lot done when you focus on them one after the other.

Whenever you complete a small goal you’ve set for yourself, you get a boost in motivation. This boost comes from increasing your belief that you can accomplish your goals. Make the goals small enough to be achievable but still somewhat challenging.

You don’t know which tasks are important to you

If you don’t understand why a task is important, it’s hard to get motivated. Thus, it’s easier to procrastinate and do something else instead. Do you know why writing is important to you?

The solution to this problem can take a bit of time and effort, but it’ll be worth it in the end. To know what’s important to you, you must examine your goals in life. What do you want to achieve in different areas of life? Consider what makes you happy and how you want to spend every day.

Once you know that, you can start prioritizing tasks by what will get you closer to your goals. Maybe you’ll find that some tasks you were putting off were unimportant. If you realize that, it’s okay not to prioritize them.

If you examine your goals and find out that writing will get you closer to them, you’ll know why you write. It could be as simple as enjoying writing and wanting to become better at it. Or it could be a career you want to pursue because it fits your goals and ideals.

Once you’ve put writing where it belongs on your list of priorities, you don’t have to procrastinate. Focus on your highest priorities first and work your way down, knowing that each step gets you closer to your goals.

Your procrastination could be caused by something more serious

Procrastination can also come from anxiety, depression, or ADHD. If you think that might be the case for you, you should look to professionals for advice. They’re usually more helpful than articles on the internet.

By looking at the root of the problem, you have a better chance of dealing with your procrastination. Learn to manage whatever causes your procrastination, and you can get more writing done. It might not be an easy road, but it’s important to walk it.