Ways to finish what you start

Do you find yourself working on the same project for way too long? Does the end seem to move further away, the more time you spend on it? Sometimes giving ourselves too much time to complete a task is the least productive way to tackle it. It may be a task you least favor doing. 

If you are avoiding doing it because it is a job you least enjoy, you need to learn to “embrace the suck”. This term means to consciously accept or appreciate something that is extremely unpleasant but unavoidable. There are ways to just do it and get to the other side of “I don’t want to”. Here is what you need to do –

Select your unwieldy task and set a challenging time limit on purpose. Force yourself to work at it no matter how uncomfortable it is.

If it makes it easier, set a kitchen timer or an alarm on your phone. Work solidly until the timer goes off. Then set it again and go at it. The recommended time is 25 minutes of solid work then 5 minutes of rest. You will be surprised by how much you get done. Don’t check your emails, your social media, or answer phone calls - just push along. Ignore the impulse to give in to distractions.

Be committed to ending your task by a certain time. Knowing your work will not interrupt your evening is a great incentive to finish projects within the given workday. Truly, if you are working and not procrastinating, you should be able to get most tasks completed, not only faster but better.

Track the progress your attitude changes are providing for you. Are you getting things done more efficiently? Quicker? Better? You will gain further insight into how you are doing by tracking.

As you get better at doing your “I don’t want to do it” work, things will become easier as you realize your strength and successes go hand in hand with accomplishing the unpleasant.

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