How to stop procrastinating – using meditation

If you’re one of those people who put things off to the last minute, I know how you feel. 

For many years that was how I operated. I remember one uni assignment that had to be submitted by 9am one day and I still hadn’t started it by midnight the night before, leaving a frantic and sleep-deprived all-nighter as the only option.

Procrastination is often driven by a healthy desire to do things well, but the need for perfection means that first attempts often fall short of expectations and the task is substituted for something that will have less risk of failure – like doing the vacuuming.

LEARN MORE: Quit alcohol or drink less with the help of meditation – online course

One way to avoid procrastination is to let go of attachment to results and instead simply follow a process or go through the motions. 

A good creative writing tip is to set a timer and get writing, even if it’s gibberish. You’ll soon get to some worthwhile material.

For runners, don’t worry what your level of fitness is, just take the first few steps, even if they don’t feel good – you’ll soon make progress.

This is an approach that’s baked into the Vedic system of meditation. We drop attachment to results and simply think our mantra whenever we remember to, not judging ourselves when we get lost in thought.

In this way, we exercise the muscle of following process rather than chasing results and we find that our tendency to procrastinate gets lessened over time.

Why planning is a great stress buster

Planning is another great way to make sure you set aside time for things in the future. I’ve been doing a business course recently where they advised the best way to launch a course is to plan well ahead. This goes against my nature as I’m much more of a wait-and-see kind of person. 

But when I do it, I know that planning ahead is almost always a better option. 

LEARN MORE: Quit alcohol or drink less with the help of meditation – online course