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Deah Curry PhD

Juicy Helpful Tips from TheWorryTamer for Overcoming Procrastination


If you have been looking for TheWorryTamer.com -- good news! The pages and blogs from that website are being relocated to this site, and to DeahCurryPhD.com. Why? Because I have way too many websites and it's time for a little spring cleaning and consolidation.

You might be wondering why am I telling you this on a site about marketing. Well, because it's a way to illustrate looking a worry in the eye, making a plan to tackle it, and taking the first steps even when you don't yet know what the outcome will be.

Looking Worry in the Eye

Are you a procrastinator? I know I can be. Especially when I feel like I don't have time to really look into something, I've been known to just put it off. And put it off. And then delay, and forget, and never really deal with it at all. If it ain't burning down, or coming at me with sirens and flashing lights, I can too easily turn my attention to things that are more fun to accomplish.

Case in point -- I've been thinking about closing the WorryTamer site for a couple years, and just now am getting around to ordering the round tuits to do it.

But procrastination has a price. It costs unnecessary worry. Even though you might try to push that worry into the corner behind the couch, it still there. Festering. Becoming a sticky, stinky pot of potential regret.

Sometimes dealing with procrastination just simply requires being a grown up. Sometimes it needs looking under the cushions at buried fears and the disappointment of unmet needs.

If you've let things get that far, as I have, I recommend ordering some lovely coconut cupcakes to make the job more palatable.

Make a Tackle Plan

Worry taming typically needs an action plan. Just deciding what needs to be done, and giving yourself a task list for doing it has a lovely benefit of lowering worry all on its own, before you even get started.

Schedule small steps, and put them on your calendar. Set alert notices to buzz your phone or send you an email so you are reminded of your intention and commitment to not slide back into procrastination. Sounds simple, but really works.

If you are procrastinating on marketing especially, put the tasks you are avoiding on your Get Clients Now action spreadsheet.

Take First Steps

The secret to completely taming worry is to actually take the steps you've planned. And the secret to doing that is to make each step as small as possible. This keeps overwhelm from sabotaging you at the start.

I have a favorite trick for this. I put about 12 ounces of water in a glass measuring cup, stick it in the microwave set on high for 3 minutes, and use that as my timer for accomplishing 1-3 small steps of a task I don't enjoy, such as unloading the dishwasher, folding laundry, cleaning the bathroom, taking out the trash, etc.

Then, when the microwave is done, I use the hot water for coffee or tea while I admire my diligence in overcoming procrastination. LOL!

Your trick for getting in motion, and your motivating reward for taking those first small steps may be different from mine, and that's okay. The idea is to use something simple and readily available to help you get started.

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