“Stop procrastinating, Giorgia!”

I had told myself I’d pop on Instagram to post a quick story and then get on with writing this article. Twenty minute later, I was still mindlessly scrolling through the Explorer page looking for… not sure what exactly. Instagram’s addictive like that.

Has the same ever happened to you?

When you have work to do and yet you’re not doing it, there’s a deeper form of self-sabotage driving you into distraction and procrastination. 

Here’s how to stop procrastinating in 5 simple steps (that really work):

5 Easy Steps To Stop Procrastinating

Step 1: Get Clear On Your Vision

My goals for August 2022 were:

• Move house (done – in 2 weeks!)
• Make a plan to turn my podcast into a video interview show (only 20% done)
• Revamp every area of my business in preparation for a major rebranding in September (80% done)

In the past, I’d have beaten myself up for not accomplishing all these goals. Heck, I’ve moved house in two weeks. That’s proof I can get anything done if I really want to.

As much as I want to turn my podcast into a video interview show, it’s just… not a priority yet. Moving was the top priority. I had just broken up with my ex and needed my own place as soon as possible, so I found one.

It’s true some goals do take longer to reach than you thought. But if you’re setting the same goal month after month after month and you’re nowhere close to reaching it, you’re likely off your vision.

A lot of entrepreneurs set goals at random, based on what they think they should be doing, what they see other people doing, or what they think is practical.

They’re not excited about these goals. They don’t have a strong why for them. They start working towards them… and then get easily distracted. Next thing they know, they end up watching cat videos on YouTube for hours.

Procrastination happens when you lose track of your vision for the impact you want to create in the world and the lifestyle you want to live.

The first step in stopping procrastination is getting clear on YOUR vision and setting clear goals and priorities based on that vision. Everything else is a distraction.

Step 2: Identify The Root Of Your Self-Sabotage

Let’s be honest: if you know what actions you need to take to reach your goals and create your vision, and you’re doing something else, you’re self-sabotaging.

At the root of self-sabotage is the fear of success. Yes, success, not failure. The truth is, by procrastinating, you’re already failing. And your brain is cool with that. It may not like it, but it’s comfortable there.

What your brain is really afraid of is the negative consequences of reaching your goals.

It’s the law of polarity, the principles that everything in the universe has an opposite. Money and success allow you financial, time, and location freedom. But they also come with responsibilities and downsides.

• What if you make it big and people find out you’re a fraud?
• What if you say the wrong thing on TV and get cancelled?
• What if you reach 6-figures and you’ll have to work harder than you’re doing now to keep it?
• What if you make a million and the taxman hits you with a huge bill or your friends and family start asking you for money?

In my case, I wasn’t working on turning my podcast into a video interview show because I was afraid of success. What if it became so successful, people wouldn’t like me anymore?

The irony is, a lot of these fears never come true. And even when they do, you’ll be a different person with the tools and resources to deal with them – and come out of the other side stronger.

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Step 3: Manage Your Emotions

Truth time: You don’t procrastinate to avoid work. You procrastinate to avoid stress.

You know that fear you just uncovered in the previous step? It doesn’t come out of nowhere. It comes from something that happened to you in the past.

Let me give you an example. My fear that people wouldn’t like me if I became a popular YouTube host came from being bullied at school for being too smart. In my mind, I equated being successful with being disliked, not belonging, not having friends.

Every time I started taking action towards that goal, the fear of being disliked and ending up alone would be triggered. This all happened unconsciously, obviously.

In the moment, I just felt anxious. Uncomfortable. Stressed. And, to avoid feeling like that, I’d get distracted with busy work, like sending an email or posting on social media.

By taking a break from the action that’s stressing you to do something else, your mind gets a break from the stress. It also gets a boost of dopamine, the feel-good hormones. Your mind learns this is a good way to relieve stress and feel good, so you keep repeating this behaviour over and over again.

The catch? While procrastination makes you feel good in the moment, it stops you from taking the action needed to reach your goals, solve your financial worries, repair your relationships… and the problems get worse. It’s a vicious circle. 

You procrastinate to feel better in the moment, but overtime procrastination adds more stress to your life.

Step 4: Change Your Identity

Your thoughts create your reality. They’re a self-fulfilling prophecy.

My experience of being bullied taught me it was not safe to be successful. So, I started playing small, wearing the mask of an insecure, shy girl who didn’t have what it takes to succeed.

Overtime, I started believing that story and started thinking those thoughts:

• What if I really don’t have what it takes?
• Am I really good enough?
• Can a girl like me really accomplish such big goals?

The identity I had adopted (insecure and incapable girl) dictated my thoughts (I don’t have what it takes), which in turn impacted my emotions (anxiety and stress), which influenced the actions I took (procrastination), which determined my results (never reached my goals), which reinforced my identity (insecure and incapable).

Do you see how vicious this circle is?

This is a form of self-sabotage. When you tell yourself you’re not the type of person who can do videos, speak in public, or whatever scares you, you’re getting yourself off the hook.

If you truly desire to reach your goals, you need to change your identity first and become the person who can confidently do what you dream of doing.

Related: Who Do You Need To Become To Reach Your Goals?

Step 5: Take Aligned Action

You know what goal you need to achieve to create your vision. And you now have the steps to deal with the limiting thoughts and uncomfortable emotions that come up as you take action towards your vision.

The next step is to create a focused plan. There are a gazillion strategies out there to reach your goal. But, doing all the things is another form of self-sabotage. You spread yourself so thin, nothing has the chance to grow – and you end up overwhelmed and burnout. Guess how I know?

You don’t need to do all the things to reach your goals. You need to create a simple action plan and stick to it consistently.

What’s the fastest, easiest, and most joyful way to reach your goal?

Whenever I record a podcast, I always record both videos and audios – and then publish only the audio. Emailing my guests for permission to upload the videos on YouTube was the easiest, fastest, and most joyful way to reach my goal. I could figure out how to have my own studio and interview guests in person later on, as my video interview show grew.

Play to your strengths here. If you’re good at writer, write a blog instead of starting a YouTube channel. If you prefer old school networking to Instagram, trust your gut and go with that.

Every strategy works, as long as you implement it fully and consistently. And you’re more likely to do that when it’s a strategy that you’re fully on board with – no resistance.

Then, add the steps in your calendar and do them. If negative thoughts and emotions come up, simply use the process above to deal with it and remind yourself you’re safe now. Your fears won’t come true. Your dreams will.

This is just a quick overview of The Leadership Advantage, my proven system to break through procrastination and reach any business and income goals in 90 days. I go a lot deeper in the system and give you plenty of tools and resources to master every step, so you can stop procrastination, take bold action even when you don’t feel like it, and finally reach your goals. Join us here.

Wrapping It Up

Procrastination is normal. The key to stop procrastinating is getting clear on your visions, identifying the root cause of self-sabotage, managing your emotions, changing your identity, and taking aligned actions, so you can become the person who can reach your goals even when you don’t feel like it.

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