7 Essential Tips for Overcoming Productive Procrastination As A Writer

When it comes to being a writer, it is very important that you stay active. The more active you are, the more content you will be able to write. However, there will be times where you will not feel like writing. Instead of focusing during your writing sessions, you may unknowingly be doing productive procrastination.

What is productive procrastination? It is the act of doing beneficial things, while delaying doing more important things. If you are a writer, and you want to achieve great things, you should learn how to overcome this challenge. Here are seven essential tips for overcoming productive procrastination as a writer.

1. Learn to identify productive procrastination

If you want to overcome productive procrastination, it is important that you know how to identify it. This can be difficult to do, because the tasks that you do may seem important. However, they are in fact minor tasks that you do in order to avoid doing the truly important tasks.

2. Rate your tasks for the day

A key way to overcome productive procrastination, is to rate your tasks for the day. Make a list of the things that you need to do. These should include the chores and minor tasks that you have for work. You should rate the tasks according to their urgency and importance. For example, if you have daily chores such as tending to your garden or cleaning your fridge, yet you have a writing project with a deadline looming near, then you should choose which one is more important to you. From a writer’s standpoint, the writing project with a deadline should be at the top of your list of priorities.

3. Do the most important tasks for the day first

When you do rate your tasks for the day, you should do the tasks that you rated as the most important. As a writer, you should focus on your urgent writing tasks first. By doing the writing task that you deemed the most important first, you will at least get it out of the way, which leaves you with the opportunity to work on less urgent tasks later.

4. Have a set writing schedule

If you want to make your writing a top priority and not have it overlooked due to productive procrastination, you could set a writing schedule for yourself. When you choose a writing schedule, it is important that your writing schedule is set at a time that is not stressful to you. The schedule could be early in the morning, the afternoon, or in the evening. The important thing to consider, is that you could follow the schedule at a regular basis.

5. Be aware of the time you spend on each task

Apart from having a writing schedule, it is also important that you are aware of the amount of time that you spend on each task. This is a common thing that many procrastinators do. They avoid doing the more important tasks by devoting a lot of time on lesser tasks. So instead of getting started on your writing tasks, you focus on lesser tasks, and spend an unnecessary amount of time doing them.

6. Don’t obsess over small tasks

Small tasks are a haven for many productive procrastinators. This is understandable because their main intent is to stave off actually doing an important task. If you are struggling with productive procrastinating, you should watch out for small tasks, and learn not to obsess over them. These tasks could be done after you have finished your main tasks.

7. Understand that productive procrastination won’t help you in the long run

If you want to avoid productive procrastination, it is important that you understand that productive procrastination will not help you in the long run. Many procrastinators try to justify that their small tasks are just as valid as their more important tasks.

However, this is merely an excuse for not doing the job. For example, you are supposed to write a new chapter of a manuscript that you are working on. However, you may not feel confident on starting on the task. Instead, you assign yourself a small task of organizing your desk.

As a writer, you know that you would do better if you just got to work on your writing project. Instead, you obsess over the lesser task of organizing your desk. This will inevitably slow down the writing process. By understanding that productive procrastination is not at all productive, you will be able to focus on the writing process more efficiently.

Conclusion

As a writer, there are a few things that you should be aware of. You should know that productive procrastination is not a positive thing. While productive procrastination may feel like you are doing something, you are in fact delaying yourself from doing meaningful work. With these tips, you’ll know how to overcome productive procrastination.