Time Management How To Stop Procrastination

At first glance, writing an article can seem like a simple task. Get the information and put it on paper. But, why is procrastination so common among writers?
You often hear people say that their house is never as clean as it is on deadline. It’s odd that people would rather vacuum than do the one thing they love the most, write. Often it comes down to staring at a blank page and not knowing where to start.
While you may have a general idea of what your article is about, at the beginning it’s really just a blank piece of paper.
Break it down into steps
Let’s say you’ve been assigned an article questioning why the jobless rate remains so high after numerous initiatives to get people back to work.
You are not going to sit down and write an article about unemployment. You are actually going to do a whole bunch of things that are going to lead you to a finished product, which will, hopefully, be an article about unemployment. But what are you really going to do?
First you are going to make a list of sources.
Second, conduct some preliminary research on the Internet.
Third, write down some questions based on your preliminary research.
Fourth, call potential sources and book interviews.
Etc.
You get the picture. Writing down the small steps that will get you where you want to be will give you the motivation to get started. Making a list of contacts isn’t daunting, scheduling an interview isn’t daunting, and once you get started, you’ll get excited about your subject matter and step into a better frame of mind to write.
Organize and Reorganize
Once you start, other tasks will come to mind. You’ll have to return a phone call or check a fact. Keep your list of tasks flexible. This should be a living document, but keep it going so you don’t get bogged down in details. Getting the day-to-day steps out of your head and on to a piece of paper will free up your mind for deeper thinking on your topic. By the way, this should be a notebook or a computer file rather than a pile of scrap pieces of paper nestled by the computer.
Carve out your writing time
Eventually, you will get to a task that is daunting. You’ll have a notebook full of information in front of you that will need to be compiled into an article. It’s important to carve out a time when you feel your creative juices are flowing to tackle your end product. Many people find they are most productive in the morning. Some people are night owls. Very few people are bubbling with energy at 2 p.m.
Whatever it is, make this your time to write. Turn off the emails and concentrate. Before you know it you’ll have your finished product. The only problem is your house will still be a mess…