Watch this video as we take you through our now proven system for turning desparation into inspiration, action and the results that we want in our life. 

Watch the video now – leave us your comments, would be great to hear from you:

Often we can trace these life situations back to many incremental events where we could have nipped it in the bud so that things didn't get this out of control – that's where beating procrastination by dealing with small challenges comes into play.

Think about these situations:

• Financial debt that seems insurmountable
• A relationship that seems to be unrepairable
• A spottty job record that now seems to have hit the end of the line
• A legal situation that has grown bigger than it should have
• A loneliness that is born of many wrecked or neglected relationships
• Personal feelings of emotional overwhelm that have hit the breaking point

In each of these cases, there were a series of small challenges that when left untreated, build on one another – often labeled procrastination – with the end result being a major life challenge. 

Chances are that if you have become unable to deal with smaller challenges along the way in one area of your life, that has (or will) carry into other areas so that these are not typically one-time events but can lead (if unchecked) to a life of major challenges and further despair.

So, the challenge then is to go about beating procrastination in the very early stages, to stop step up and deal with the small life challenges BEFORE they begin to pile up and become major challenges. 

In reality, the reasons why we don't face the fist unpaid debt, the first sign of trouble in a relationship, the first sign of emotional challenge is often due to one or a combination of:

• lack of self-awareness – we are not in touch or paying attention to recognize and deal with these smaller challenges when they arise
• fear that we won't even be able to deal with the small challenge which of course, continues to build until we hit a breaking point
• lack of self confidence – at the root of all procrastination (and critical to beating procrastination) is having enough faith, trust and confidence in yourself to know that you can deal with these challenges as they come up no matter how challenging they may be
• being healthy and clear — if you are suffering from constant poor health and low energy you will not be "on your game" to deal with these challenges as they arise — placing them on the back burner until you feel better which is a recipe for disaster

Inside Attracting Greatness, a plan to break down fear, boost self-confidence, improve self-awareness and address the most common health and energy challenges is the key to beating procrastination so that you can face the small (and even bigger) challenges without the stress and anxiety that comes with today's daily living.

Once again you can be free to live with high confidence knowing you can face anything that comes your way without the fear that things will pile up and become out of control in your life.

Failure to achieve doesn't always come down to issues of time management or the fact we have procrastinated on a lucid plan we had all worked out, it sometimes comes down to the fact that we don't have a plan at all or at least a plan that we truly believe in.  Any way you look at it though, procrastination is often the result that is most obvious when we analyze our inability to act in congruence with where we believe we should be.

First – let's define procrastination in way that makes it clear and simple for all of us: 

Definition of Procrastination:  The simplest definition is that we put off doing what we know needs to be done.  However, I like to enhance that a little so that we understand the truly frustrating impact that it often leads to in our lives – specifically, it is the period of time between when we decide we need to do or achieve something and the time at which we actually begin working on that goal.  In other words, there must pre-exist an objective at which time the clock begins ticking on when we take action toward that objective. 

There are hundreds of reasons that we can come up with for delay in action ranging from laziness to fear through interruption and other oustide forces.  Therein lies the challenge in tackling procrastination, there are so many possible causes that it is tough to pain all situations with the exact same brush.

However, there are some very powerful things you can do in your life to prevent procrastination from occuring in the first place…making your life much more productive, effective and happy.

1. Refinine Your Objectives:  Look, when it comes right down to it, procrastinators often delay action based on the fact that the objective they are aiming for is not big enough, not important enough, or at least is perceived that way by them.  So you may have several errands in a day that you put off doing in favor or something else – that something else could be MORE important (if you have the right objectives defined) in which case procratination is justified or it could be that you put off the errands in favor of something less important such as watching TV, surfing the internet, hanging out with friends, etc… The challenge is still that your objectives are not big enough, so instead of following through on them, you gravitate to other things.  The choice you have is simple, either reinforce the importance of the errands (place enough positive consequences on accomplishing them and negative options on NOT achieving them) OR come up with MORE important objectives to replace those that really don't matter anyway so that when you do gravitate away from them you do so toward something that is more important and meaningful. 

2. Recognize and Deal With the Fear.  We all get nervous, that feeling like we have been kicked in the stomach, the butterflies, the self-doubt, the sweaty palms when we tackle something that is either outside of our comfort zone or is aimed at accomplishing a VERY important objective in our life.  For example, we may create a huge barrier to taking weekly music lessons because our ultimate objective is to play live in front of an audience in 1-month and while exciting, that makes us very anxious.  The result is that we sabotage our own progress with our fear and anxiety.  To deal with this fear, we need to bring it to a much more objective level.  Inside Attracting Greatness there are a terrific set of exercises that help us manage fear and anxiety so that we can put it aside and continue to achieve incredible things in our lives – this basically allows us to overcome procrastination whenever we want. 

3. Win the War Inside Your Brain:  For hundreds of years studies have shown that the human brain will almost always go with instant and immediate gratification versus taking disciplined action toward a longer-term objective or goal.  If your objective is to eat a salad for lunch each day, that works fine if you can put yourself into a controlled situation where the salad is easier to get than other food, but what happens if you are out with friends and everyone is ordering the fish and chips…could you resist "slipping" for just one day (which leads to a second day and so on…) if this situation is put in front of you?  For most people, no.  So, to win the fight against procrastination, you must realize this basic human behavior to "cheat" and work in advance to keep your discipline and willpower in the face of short-term distractors. 

If you can set big objectives, work on convincing yourself of the emotional benefit of reaching those objectives, challenge your fears with pursuing those objectives and think through some possible "de-railers", then you WILL get the leg up on stopping procrastination in your life for good. 

Give these a try and let us know how they work for you…oh, and do let us know if you have another technique you would like to add by leaving us a comment.

Break Analysis Paralysis

Are you guilty of over-thinking things in your life? 

Do you analyze things to death and never seem to take action?

Do opportunities slip by as you talk yourself out of taking advantage of them? 

Has procrastination become your middle name?

Over-thinking is an extremely common problem today…and while I don't advocate jumping into major decisions before you have a plan, I also know that fear often manifests itself in falling back to analysis paralysis rather than taking a chance and moving forward with action. 

Much of my personal success and happiness over the last 8-years or so can directly be attributed to a fundamental shift in perspective.

MOVING FROM FEAR OF FAILURE TO EXPECTATION OF FEEDBACK

Try changing your perspective along these lines…

Most people tihnk too much because they feel it is the best way to reduce their risk of failing or of not getting the result they desire.

But is that realistic?

Did you learn to walk by thinking about it or trying?

Will thinking make you a better parent?

Did you learn to ride a bike by thinking about or doing it?

Try telling yourself (over and over again) that the BEST way to learn how to do anything and actually get the result we are looking for is by DOING, getting feedback, making adjustments and doing again.

Use simple examples of past learning to reinforce this thinking – soon you will have a new perspective and over-thinking and will be a condition of the past and you can break out of procrastination on demand.

Show me someone struggling with low motivation, unhappiness, health challenges, high stress and a negative outlook in life and typically they will also be sitting on the sidelines, either too afraid or overwhelmed to take action.

Here's a tip I try and live by each day (this is one of the proven tips outlined in Attracting Greatness, the BluePrint to Personal Success and True Happiness)…and so far this tip has meant massive improvements in all areas of my life so I urge you to give it a try too. 

Force yourself to do something that makes you uncomfortable each week.  Something that extends your comfort zone, that makes you feel nervous, unsure or slightly queezy!

I'm not talking about brain surgery or even walking on hot coals, but rather focus on some actions that have seemed just out of reach in the past:

• Striking up a conversation with someone that intimidates you
• Stepping up and volunteering for a task that you may not be sure you can do
• Take a public speaking course
• Sign up for a personal training course
• Organize a group activity around a hobby or personal interest
• Start up a small business based on a passion or talent you have

Trust me, as you learn to step out of your comfort zone more often it becomes very natural, fear is no longer a factor in holding you back and within a very short time you gain momentum, self-confidence and deeply held personal belief that you are becoming unstoppable building momentum and motivation - in other words, you are GROWING again!

So many people continue to live lives of quiet desperation despite knowing exactly what it is that they want or desire – why is that?

Can you remember a time in your life when you knew you wanted something different, but for whatever reason you couldn't get unstuck, couldn't find your way out of being 'stuck in a rut' no matter how much positive energy you tried to use?

We recently surveyed a number of people that visit one of our sites and found the top barriers to change to include:

• procrastination
• low self-esteem
• an inability to take action
• fear of failing
• fear of what change might mean in my life
• not being sure of the path forward

Let us know which one of these hits home most for you, or perhaps you have another we have not yet heard…leave a comment by hitting the comment button at the top right of the post.

What is quite interesting about this list is that a good deal of these factors can either be eliminated or, at the very least, reduced by improving our own self confidence.

Fear, frustration, procrastination and uncertainty over our path are often associated with low self confidence.  We gravitate to someone else's expectations because we don't fully trust our own.  We fear the unknown NOT because of anything specific, but more because we are not sure in our ability to handle whatever comes our way.

Think about that for a moment…it is not any one specific event or occurrence we fear, it is the paralyzing fear of us not being able to handle whatever comes up that keeps us in comfortable situations – even if we badly want change.

Inside Attracting Greatness we outline the 5-Pillars of Greatness – confidence is right up there as the top pillar…fundamental foundation for all other change, achievement, growth and progress in our lives.

Next time you struggle with procrastination, fear or uncertainty – stop beating yourself up and instead work on improving your own self confidence…in the end that will get you over the hump.

How many of us dream of writing a book one day, yet a tiny fraction of us every actually write and sell that book.

If every one of us who had an "ideal" health and wellness regime in mind actually was able to live out that lifestyle then the world would be a much healthier place

Wondering how to stop procrastination befuldles the best of us…we all suffer from procrastination at one time or another.  Sometimes we even hide it behind claims of perfectionism, indifference or even build complex defense mechanisms around lack of taking action.

In the end, the only one we are hurting is ourselves and those around us. 

In the blockbuster book "Achieving Greatness" it is clearly demonstrated that we must learn to deal with two GIANT concepts in our life before we can claim victory over procrastination forover…

1. Align our deepest desires with our desired plans and actions so that we are motivated deeply and emotionally to achieve an end result – a drive that will overcome procrastination in nearly every scenario, and…
2. Deal with latent fears and low self-esteem that interrupts progress

By tearing down the roadblocks that stand in the way of massive, almost insane passion and motivation, we can re-discover a results-oriented style of living that will make procrastination a distant memory.

Maybe it hasn't always been that way, but there's just something that is not quite right in your life now.  No matter what you try and do, the outcome is the same, you're not getting things done.

Just like any behavior, procrastination can become repetitive – a learned habit making it more challenging to overcome taking on the more acceptable description of being a perfectionist.  Yet clearly, the main challenges are how to get motivated and truly take action.

Here are some techniques that really work for those who want to overcome procrastination:

1. Many of our behaviors are heavily influenced by the pain versus pleasure concept.  We are motivated to avoid pain and seek out pleasure.  The first thing we need to do is understand

a) How badly do you want the result?

b) How painful is NOT having the result?

Next, apply this technique for increasing the amount of pleasure you experience by taking action toward achieving a specific goal.

What I have found works is to write out what my life would be like when I am living with the result you are seeking…how do you feel when you wake up in the morning, what would your day look like, who would you be spending time with, where would you live…

Do the same thing to elevate the pain threshold for NOT taking action.

What will your life be like, how will you feel, what will you be doing, what frustrations will you feel then.

This way you turn the tables completely in favor of the pleasurable aspects of taking action while increasing the pain associated with NOT taking action.

2. In this personal achievement manual, the importance of having a strong purpose in your life and aligning your actions with that purpose is illustrated.  In fact, 95% of the people around us today have no idea how to identify their purpose let alone use it for motivation. Identifying your inner purpose can be done through introspection, meditation, yoga and various other methods of looking inward – well worth the effort as this can unlock a level of motivation and energy you never thought you had within you.

3. Face fear and uncertainty – work on specific fear meanagement technqiues using meditation and yoga. The truth is that we cannot expect to eliminate fear, doubt and uncertainty altogether – they serve an important purpose in our life, but we can manage them so that they no longer hold us back from taking action.

4. Boost your energy level by eliminating toxicity and other health barriers most of us live each day with.  There may be chemical and physical reasons that lazy people cannot summon the energy to be effective, I myself lived through such a time in my early twenties, it took me two-years to discover what it was, then I was able to treat it and move on within a matter of weeks. 

By following these 4 ways of overcoming procrastination you can completely change your attitudes, behaviors and energy fueling yourself with the now habit that can turn your life into a highly satisfying results-oriented, achievement phase from the more disorganized, frustrating place you may find yourself today. 

I know I have…and looking back, in each case I can trace this lack of energy, motivation and progress (otherwise known as procrastination) back to a mis-alignment with my core beliefs and wishes.

This may be a little hard to understand, I know it was for me, but we all have a core belief system within us that is made up from a combination of who we are and how we were raised.  We also operate heavily at a subconscious level – pretty much anything we do is somehow influenced (positively or negatively by our subconscious), thus we get these "feelings" of very high satisfaction when we are aligned and feelings of uneasiness and low energy when we are poorly aligned.

Procrastination is often the result of being poorly aligned with our core beliefs — we may be able to fool those around us, but we cannot fool ourselves.  That's why purely external methods of trying to get motivated and stay productive are tempoarary solutions, at best.

Within "Beyond Greatness" - the new manual for identifying and harnessing your core beliefs for maximum achievement, it is made very clear that harmony with core beliefs is essential to the main aspects of achievement such as self-confidence and self-esteem, our health and energy and even our ability to deal with fear and uncertainty in our lives.

What I mean by that is…do you ENJOY what you are doing with your day?  You may be good at it, but do you really ENJOY it? 

Try sitting down for an hour and writing out a picture of your ideal day – what would you be doing?  Would you be doing mostly what you are doing now, or something vastly different?  What project would you be working on?  What problems would you be solving with your skills? 

Chances are you're subconscious mind is fighting back when you attempt to do something because it doesn't "buy-in" to what you are working on – that could have to do with the general area of your focus or the specific types of outcomes you are trying to achieve.  

There is only one true way of dealing with procrastination and get out of the rut you may be stuck in with your life, that is to uncover your core beliefs and then map them into actionable activities within your day.  Instead of trying to like what you are doing, try doing what you like. 

Jeff