#ProdChat – 01/13/2016 – Overcoming Procrastination
On January 13, 2016, #ProdChat discussed the topic, Overcoming Procrastination. Procrastination is a perennial issues for everyone trying to be productive in life and work; it strikes everyone at some point and there are strategies to overcome procrastination when it does. Watch the slideshow to see what the productivity enthusiasts on #ProdChat had to say about overcoming procrastination. Feel free to comment below with your thoughts as well, or shoot us a tweet by hashtagging #prodchat! Enjoy!
Questions:
- Q1: What are your biggest procrastination triggers? #prodchat
- Q2: What have you done to become more aware when you’re procrastinating? What do you to tell yourself? #prodchat
- Q3: How do you determine the *real* reason you’re procrastinating on a task? #prodchat
- Q4: What have been your success techniques for overcoming procrastination? #prodchat
- Q5: What anti-procrastination tools have you found to work? (e.g., apps/software/hardware, or analog) #prodchat
- Q6: What is one thing you are procrastinating on this week? And, how will you attempt to stop procrastinating on it? #prodchat
Picture tweets:
Raw transcript:
| User | Tweet | Date and Time |
| rsidneysmith | Welcome to #ProdChat, the weekly chat for productivity enthusiasts! https://t.co/C40vBakDrB https://t.co/ZxJNdGBbqo | Thu Jan 14 00:59:05 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Today on #ProdChat we’re discussing “Overcoming #Procrastination!” Join us! https://t.co/EqFvbBQ9m8 | Thu Jan 14 01:00:28 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | So, let’s start! In a tweet, introduce yourself. Who are you? What do you do? What are your passions? #prodchat https://t.co/pgmLSlYTlF | Thu Jan 14 01:01:08 +0000 2016 |
| CTrappe | Hi #prodchat. Christoph here in Iowa. The Authentic Storyteller. #contentmarketing around the globe – mostly in healthcare. | Thu Jan 14 01:01:50 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | What’s one #productivity success you’ve had since the new year began? #prodchat https://t.co/QRZTfKm03k | Thu Jan 14 01:02:06 +0000 2016 |
| davidduran017 | RT @CTrappe: Hi #prodchat. Christoph here in Iowa. The Authentic Storyteller. #contentmarketing around the globe – mostly in healthcare. | Thu Jan 14 01:02:44 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @CTrappe Great to have you on #prodchat, Christoph! | Thu Jan 14 01:03:43 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Please add #prodchat to tweets. Questions will come as Q1, Q2, Q3. Answer A1, A2, A3, for readability! https://t.co/ERPFHmXaYA | Thu Jan 14 01:04:06 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Q1: What are your biggest procrastination triggers? #prodchat https://t.co/wxjZgt02LO | Thu Jan 14 01:05:02 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | Hi friends, it’s been a while since I’ve done #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:05:14 +0000 2016 |
| CTrappe | Twitter is great to procrastinate. #prodchat I will just read these 55,000 tweets before doing some more writing. | Thu Jan 14 01:05:36 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | A1: The “it’s not immediate,” train of thought. “I’ll do it later/tomorrow” #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:05:55 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac Hey, Derek! Great to have you on the #prodchat stream this evening! | Thu Jan 14 01:06:06 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith Lee Herman: GTD enthusiast/practitioner, @SASsoftware employee (all opinions mine), music lover, Mac user, bicyclist #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:06:27 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @CTrappe Hopefully you can use a few of those 55K tweets as inspiration! 😉 #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:06:33 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @macbikegeek Welcome, Lee! How’re you this evening? #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:07:47 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | I tend to start multi-tasking my time away when it a task I really do not want to tackle. Ends up wasting more time overall. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:07:58 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | A1a: My biggest triggers are overwhelm. If I haven’t done a good job of breaking down projects into actions. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:08:50 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith Hi Ray, fine, thanks! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:08:54 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | RT @rsidneysmith: A1a: My biggest triggers are overwhelm. If I haven’t done a good job of breaking down projects into actions. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:09:11 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | A1b: And, if I feel like I don’t have the resources to tackle a task right that moment (which could be emotional or energy-based). #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:09:23 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac So it sounds like finding the motivation for the task you’re procrastinating on is important, eh? #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:10:00 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith your A1b has been the story of my week. 🙁 #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:10:03 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Q2: What have you done to become more aware when you’re procrastinating? What do you to tell yourself? #prodchat https://t.co/BYU6pxaFD9 | Thu Jan 14 01:10:04 +0000 2016 |
| CTrappe | It’s hard to procrastinate when you are passionate about the task at hand. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:10:58 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith A2 it’s pretty obvious when I’m not doing what my #GTD system is telling me I should be. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:11:03 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac I try to look up a horizon (in #GTD lingo) for the reason I’m doing something that I’m resisting doing. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:11:56 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac If I can tie my task, project or goal up to my “bigger game” (Robbins-ish lingo) then I find my motivation. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:13:12 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | @rsidneysmith Motivation is very important to me, or else I think to myself, “What’s the point?” I need to justify it to myself #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:13:52 +0000 2016 |
| TeddyWinning | RT @CTrappe: Hi #prodchat. Christoph here in Iowa. The Authentic Storyteller. #contentmarketing around the globe – mostly in healthcare. | Thu Jan 14 01:13:52 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | RT @rsidneysmith: @DerekTac If I can tie my task, project or goal up to my “bigger game” (Robbins-ish lingo) then I find my motivation. #pr… | Thu Jan 14 01:14:09 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | A2: I definitely keep a journal and as soon as I notice procrastination, I open my Evernote journal notebook and start writing. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:14:33 +0000 2016 |
| CTrappe | Some unnecessary processes are actually busy procrastination. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:14:35 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | Very true! Not all tasks are created equal RT @CTrappe: It’s hard to procrastinate when you are passionate about the task at hand #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:14:54 +0000 2016 |
| fynikm | @CTrappe Agree. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:16:36 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac One thing to keep in mind is to never commit to doing anything that you’re not motivated to do. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:17:15 +0000 2016 |
| tanishasapp | RT @CTrappe: Some unnecessary processes are actually busy procrastination. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:17:32 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac Or at least, don’t take it on until you understand why you’re motivated to do it (i.e., boss asks => paycheck!) #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:17:42 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @fynikm Hi, Nikki! Welcome to #prodchat! 🙂 | Thu Jan 14 01:18:22 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | RT @rsidneysmith: @DerekTac Or at least, don’t take it on until you understand why you’re motivated to do it (i.e., boss asks => paycheck!)… | Thu Jan 14 01:19:04 +0000 2016 |
| fynikm | @rsidneysmith Thanks Ray! I’m new to the chat – sneaking a peek! #prodchat! | Thu Jan 14 01:19:33 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | @rsidneysmith Paychecks are very motivating indeed! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:19:38 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Q3: How do you determine the *real* reason you’re procrastinating on a task? #prodchat https://t.co/ThBvaa8C6r | Thu Jan 14 01:20:10 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac I imagine they are! Ha ha. You could also be motivated because you are passionate about your vocation, but… ;-)/#prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:20:34 +0000 2016 |
| CTrappe | Some procrastination is actually thinking time. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:20:49 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith A3 usually reflection on why provides a quick answer: don’t have/perceive all pre-reqs in place; fear; not fun, etc. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:22:26 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | A3: When looking up #GTD horizons don’t work, using the “5 Why’s” method is really useful. #prodchat #procrastination #productivity | Thu Jan 14 01:22:44 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @macbikegeek Yes, similar to my usual culprits! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:23:39 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Here’s the Wikipedia article on 5 Why’s (root cause analysis): https://t.co/oiNIJ7BD5E #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:24:58 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Interested in getting financially fit? Join the Financial Productivity Challenge! https://t.co/1GfKwVjQ8z #prodchat https://t.co/RsfCqw6tdn | Thu Jan 14 01:25:05 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @bojandordevic You betcha! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:25:31 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Q4: What have been your successful techniques for overcoming procrastination? #prodchat https://t.co/QNWvQhaUIw | Thu Jan 14 01:27:27 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith A4 as you suggested, connect to next level motivation, sometimes that means just suck it up and start. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:28:36 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Agreed. I start smaller than planned (just a five minutes of whatever it is), or persistent starting. #prodchat https://t.co/kEQU1eqiBp | Thu Jan 14 01:30:02 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith #Pomodoro method is useful in starting – forces you to just focus on the task and do something. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:33:43 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | A4: This #procrastination strategy works well for *long-term*…turn years into months or days. eg, 10 years => 3,650 days #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:33:53 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @macbikegeek @PomodoroTech can be really helpful, for sure, to make a task time-bound! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:35:08 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Q5: What anti-procrastination tools have you found to work? (e.g., apps/software/hardware, or analog) #prodchat https://t.co/tAamaONFkm | Thu Jan 14 01:40:04 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | A4: The perennial #procrastination strategy that works well for me also is to tackle tough tasks at the top of the day! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:40:32 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Join https://t.co/WPfpS65crQ for our January discussion of _Nudge_ by Profs. @R_Thaler & @CassSunstein! #prodchat https://t.co/z9d8AolwVH | Thu Jan 14 01:45:08 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | A5: Anti-Procrastination Apps Actually Work, Study Says https://t.co/YQ0vZv1pHb #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:47:38 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Has anyone tried Finish, The Anti-Procrastination App? https://t.co/b4EILLNGxr #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:49:00 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Q6: What is one thing you are procrastinating on this week? How will you attempt to stop procrastinating? #prodchat https://t.co/jg6qQur1Ng | Thu Jan 14 01:50:06 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith A6 requirements document for work. just have to suck it up and finish it. keeps stalling due to ambiguity. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:51:59 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | A6: I’ve been delaying finishing editing my forthcoming book! I’m going to review the next five pages tomorrow morning! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:53:42 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @macbikegeek What will help you clarify this ambiguity? #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:54:06 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | A6: Fixing my 2 desktop PCs. There are fan issues. I’ll use “it will be quiet when it’s all done,” as a motive! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:54:22 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | @rsidneysmith Finish. has a very interesting business model. Neato #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:55:38 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac What’s the next thing that physically needs to be done? ID the fan parts to purchase? Call tech support? Unplug PCs? #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 01:55:59 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Next #ProdChat: January 20, 2015 – “Rebooting Your NY’s Resolutions” w/ @nmhouston hosting! Have a great week! https://t.co/1qDy2LLYzW | Thu Jan 14 01:59:05 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | Thanks #productivity enthusiasts for today’s #ProdChat! Join us next week! https://t.co/ieN0gKkcCh | Thu Jan 14 02:00:19 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | @rsidneysmith Unplug everything, dig PCs out, open them up, assess problems. Canned air the crap out of them outside #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 02:01:07 +0000 2016 |
| macbikegeek | @rsidneysmith just have to take my stab at it and let the customer say it’s right or correct it. just have to gut my way thru it. #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 02:01:10 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | @rsidneysmith Hopefully don’t need replacement fans, but they’re super old. Who knows! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 02:01:29 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | @rsidneysmith We’re talking not paid here. Trying to find motivation for this recreational opportunity! #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 02:02:28 +0000 2016 |
| rsidneysmith | @DerekTac Understood. I love working on my computer hardware way more than software, I admit. So I’d be more motivated… Lol #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 02:04:18 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | @rsidneysmith Believe me, if it were my beefy gaming rig I would hop on it no problem! These are ancient clunkers I have to fix #prodchat | Thu Jan 14 02:06:35 +0000 2016 |
| DerekTac | @macbikegeek Nice seeing you in #prodchat tonight. Let’s connect! Have a great evening. | Thu Jan 14 02:24:03 +0000 2016 |