Every professional occasionally drags their feet on certain projects. It’s easy to put off tedious tasks, like filing expense reports, or emotionally draining ones, like writing up a negative employee performance review. Indeed, research has shown that procrastination — rather than being a moral failing or sign of laziness — is actually a subconscious strategy to avoid negative emotions.
5 Ways to Actually Move Forward on That Task You’ve Been Avoiding
Stop procrastinating on those ambiguous but essential tasks.
September 12, 2023
Summary.
It’s human nature to procrastinate — but it can be devastating for your future goals if you continually procrastinate on projects that are important but not urgent. In this article, the author offers five strategies to overcome procrastination on ambiguous but essential tasks: 1) Get clear on the vision. 2) Identify concrete steps. 3) Take (small) action. 4) Create forcing functions. 5) Limit competing distractions.
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New!
HBR Learning
Time Management Course
Accelerate your career with Harvard ManageMentor®. HBR Learning’s online leadership training helps you hone your skills with courses like Time Management. Earn badges to share on LinkedIn and your resume. Access more than 40 courses trusted by Fortune 500 companies.
Make smarter, more purposeful choices about how you spend your day.