I procrastinated in writing this article. Seriously. I admit it.

    At times, wanting to get things “just right,” I’ll slip into procrastination: making lists, jotting down ideas, checking emails, clicking on links to websites in my bookmarks toolbar… and so forth. Worried about how something will turn out, I’ll simply slow down or will be more prone to distraction. That was the case with this post - and as the Edward Young quotation so aptly captures, time was definitely stolen - or more accurately, wasted.

    Procrastination isn’t usually a problem for me, but 20% of the U.S. population are chronic procrastinators, according to Dr. Joseph Ferrari of     DePaul University in Chicago. That fact means that procrastination and the ensuing reduction in productivity are significant problems in the U.S. . It gets worse: studies have shown that college students who procrastinate are more apt to get sick from colds, the flu and gastrointestinal problems.

    What can I do?

    If you sometimes procrastinate, you might gain some insight into why you do so by understanding the three basic types of procrastinators; they are:

    * The thrill seeker who looks forward to the rush he or she gets when facing last-minute deadline pressure
    * The avoiders - those who avoid completing tasks for fear of failure or success and who are especially worried about what others think of them. Perfectionists fall into this category (this is me)
    * Decisional procrastinators - those who simply can’t make a decision; not making a decision relieves this type of procrastinator responsibility for the outcome of events

    No matter what type of procrastinator you are, there are six simple steps you can take to address this issue…

    1. Set clear goals

    As you approach projects and tasks, set clear goals for their completion. Using this post as an example, my goal could simply be: complete a first draft by Sunday evening, revise Monday evening, schedule for publication at 4AM on Tuesday. My clear goal would be to have the post completed and final by Monday evening.

    If you don’t know where you’re going, how are you going to get there? Set clear, definitive goals. Your goals should be specific, measurable, and time-bound (i.e., have a clear completion date and/or time.) And having done this, stick to those goals.

    2. Eliminate distractions

    We all have WAY too many distractions every day. Only you know exactly what works for you, but here are a few things to consider:

    * Turn off all electronic alarms for email, SMS, etc.
    * Log off your email account
    * If working on your computer, have just one program or browser tab open - unless your work requires research & multiple tabs
    * Close the door
    * Ditch the iPod, iTunes, and anything else that’ll distract you
    * Forward your phone into voicemail
    * Shut off your Blackberry…

    …and so forth. In short, reduce the number of potential distractions so you can FOCUS.

    3. Stop worrying about perfection

    Face it: it’s not going to be perfect. Things in life rarely are. Better to hammer out a rough draft and revise later than spin your wheels for hours. Instead of worrying about how others will react to your work, recognize that you’ll be disappointed in yourself if you don’t get the work done or do a poor job because you procrastinated… and in the larger scheme of things, that disappointment will sting far worse than any other.

    4. Don’t lie to yourself

    Sometimes we’ll tell ourselves little lies like, “I’ll be much better equipped to jump on this early tomorrow morning,” or “There’s not enough pressure on me to do this now - I’ll wait till tomorrow, or the day after.” All we accomplish when we lie to ourselves like this is to waste our best resource - time. Don’t lie to yourself! You aren’t kidding anyone. Stop lying, start doing, and you’ll feel better about yourself.

    5. Break it into pieces

    One of the oldest axioms out there, but it’s true: break the task into smaller chunks and tackle one at a time. For this post, it could be something like: a) create a rough outline of the post; b) conduct research; c) write a rough draft. By turning it into a series of smaller pieces, the task becomes more manageable. Focusing on the first, smaller step of a project makes the entire task less daunting, and makes it easier to start.

    6. Do it NOW!

    “A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.”

    -Lao Tzu, founder of Taoism (~200 BC)

    Having done steps 1-5, what remains is simple: START. Do it now. As is the case with many things we fear, once underway, it’s not all that bad. And if you stay focused, you’ll get a lot done quickly. Getting started is the tough part; simply do it now.

    我承认，我确实在写这篇文章上也有所拖延。

    有时，我们在等待“合适的时间”去做某些事。那我们将陷入拖延的境地：从开始提纲、草草记下想法、查看电子邮件 、以及查看书签工具栏中的网络链接、、、、、等等。担心一些事情的发生，我们将止步不前或者更倾向于受外物干扰。这篇稿子所遇到情况正如爱德华·扬所描述拖沓所所掠夺的那样，时间无疑是被偷去了---或者更为恰当的说是时间被浪费了。

    拖沓并不是我常犯的毛病，但按照芝加哥的保罗大学约瑟夫·法拉利博士的说法20%的美国人是慢性拖拉者。这个情况意为着拖沓以及由拖沓引起的生产力的减少是美国的重大问题。更让人担忧的事：研究发现拖沓的学生更倾向于患上着凉、流感和肠胃方面的疾病。

    我该怎么做？

    如果你有拖沓的习惯，你需要去知道你为什么会这样，通过理解拖沓的3个基本类型将有助于你的洞察其中的奥秘，它们是：

    * 刺激寻找者:渴望面临最终期限压力所带来的匆忙感觉。

    * 逃避者：由于对失败和成功的害怕或者是害怕别人对自己的想法，而去逃避完成任务。十全十美者属于这一类（我也是这类）

    * 优柔寡断拖延者：这些人仅仅是不能做出决定；不做出决定减少这类拖沓者对事情结果的所承担的责任。

    不论你是那种类型的拖沓者，你都可以用这 6个简单的步骤来处理这个问题、、、、

    1.设立清晰的目标

    当你接手一个计划和任务，设定完成任务的清晰目标。用这篇稿子为例，我的目标能简单的概括为：在星期天下午之前完成初稿，星期一下午修改，发表时间则设定在周二的凌晨4点。我的清晰的目标将使我的稿子最后在周一下午完成。

    如果你不知道从何入手，那你该怎样去做呢？设定清晰的、最终的目标。你的目标应该是详细的、适当的和有时间限制的（比如：有一个明确的完成日期或者时间。）然后在做这件事上要始终和目标保持一致。

    2．消除分心的因素

    我们每天都要遇到很多分心的事物。尽管只有你自己才清楚哪些是对你有帮助的，但是以下的一些事物应该考虑的：

    * 关闭所有的电子邮件、短信等的电子警报。

    * 注销您的电子邮件帐户

    * 如果你是在电脑上工作，只打开一个程序或者浏览器标签---除非你的工作需要搜索和多个标签。

    * 关上门

    * 抛开iPod、iTunes和其他所有能转移你注意力的事物。

    * 转发您的电话到语音信箱

    * 关掉你的Blackberry（智能手机）

    等等，简而言之，减少潜在的分心的事物的数量，那样你就可以更为专注。

    3.不用担心完善

    面对它：它不会是完美的。生活中完美的事物寥寥无几。比起在耗费几个小时而没有进展不如列出一个粗略的草案，然后再修改来得好。不要去担心他人怎么看待你的工作，认清楚如果由于你的拖延而没有完成工作或者把工作做得很糟，那才是让你自己失望的根源。还有就是如果在一个大的计划中，拖延将带来的后果将更加糟糕。

    4.不要欺骗自己

    有时你会对自己诸如此类的小谎言：“我最好还是明天早上开始干这个工作”或者“我现在还没有兴趣做这个---还是等到明天或者后天再做吧。”当我们像这样欺骗自己的时候，我们所做的只不过是是在浪费我们最为宝贵的财富——时间。不要欺骗自己！你不是在嘲弄他人。停止说谎，开始工作，你的自我感觉才会更好。

    5.把事情分成几个部分做

    尽管这是一个非常古老的公理之一，但是它是正确的：把任务分成更小的部分，然后一次一个的完成。就拿这篇稿子而言，就应该像这样把它分解：a）制定稿子的粗略大纲；b）研究调查；c）写初稿。通过把它转变成更小的部分，这个任务就更易于处理。专注于第一个部分，方案的更小一部分将使整个任务变得不再让人退缩，也使得任务更容易开始。

    6.现在就开始做

    “千里之行始于足下。”

    ——老子，道教创始人（公元前200~）

    做到了1至5步，剩下的就是：开始。现在就做。照现在的样子我们有许多事情感到害怕，一旦开始，其实也没那么糟糕。如果你也保持专注，你将很快就完成很多事。开始做一件事情是困难的，而简单的是现在就开始做。