Ever heard that bit of wisdom, "Never put off till tomorrow, what you can do today"? One of the attributes of great sales people is a trait we call "urgency". They want it done yesterday...or now at the latest. They never put things off.
As sales people, we keep many plates spinning wildly at all times. We need to be able to multi-task, and, we need to get things done. Today is better than tomorrow.
Sometimes, however, getting things done is interrupted by another activity that we call "procrastination." I'm sure none of my readers have EVER been guilty of indulging in this activity. But, on the off chance that some of you DO engage in it from time to time, let's look at some of the major causes of procrastination and how we may avoid them.
- I don't have time now
- The task is difficult
- The task is unpleasant
- I don't see why the task is so important
- It isn't due for a while
- I don't have clear or written goals
- I'm not organized
- I have too many interruptions
- I'm overwhelmed
- I have too many tasks to choose from
Sound familiar? If so, the following activities may help you to replace procrastination with positive action:
- Set deadlines
- Let others know your deadlines
- Start each day with the most important task on your list
- Do it once
- Break down the job into smaller parts
- Reduce interruptions
- Eliminate reasons why you can't get started on the task
- Create a reward
It is important to recognize when we procrastinate and why. Spend a week looking at your activities and how quickly you get them done. What do you do instead of doing what you should? Once you've identified the problem, you can take steps to get things done now rather than later. Life gets a lot easier when we do the important rather than the urgent!
