Member-only story
This Easy Hack Forces You to Stop Procrastinating
Tell the right people about your goals.
The kitchen sink is overflowing with dirty dishes that need cleaning.
Your tax info sits on a desk, waiting for you to work on them.
A memo is due for a client, but you have not even turned on your laptop.
Your life is full of tasks to be tackled, yet you would rather postpone doing them.
So what should you tell yourself when you do not want to do something, but need to anyway?
Here is my hack — I don’t tell myself anything. I mention it to somebody else, so they can keep me accountable.
I am incredibly adept at lying to myself. For example, I can convince myself that surfing the internet and perusing social media right now will help me finish writing a report or article later. I can justify putting things off by telling myself that goofing off online will help me relax, which will make it easier for me to write.
But you know who will not fall for that?
My wife, friends, coworkers, and nearly anybody who dwells outside the confines of my mind.
They will cut through the facade and call me out on my bullshit. This is why telling someone else about my goals is a smart strategy.