Confessions of a Recovering Procrastinator: 10 Things That Helped Me Start

Procrastination, at its core, is when we deviate from our initial goals — taking longer breaks than intended, focusing on the comfort now rather than the task in hand. What seems lazy is actually the brain’s way of handling stress. I was struggling, when people thought I was being lazy. Procrastination through the lens of a procrastinator

There are several theories on why this happens. One convincing reason that I came across was :

“If a task feels overwhelming or risky (What if I fail?), the amygdala (fear centre) activates. Instead of facing discomfort, the brain chooses avoidance.”

This way limbic system (part of the brain that acts as the “pleasure centre”) seeks immediate comfort and avoids the discomfort. This explains why scrolling Instagram, doing anything other than what you have to do seems tempting.

One way to conquer this limbic system is to please it with small wins. This can be achieved by setting short goals which doesn’t seem overwhelming.

“If you procrastinate when faced with a big, difficult problem… break the problem into parts, and handle one part at a time.” — Robert Collier

“One of the best escapes from the prison of procrastination is to take even the smallest step toward your goal.” — Denis Waitley

Here’s a curated list of what worked for me:

1. Break a task into smaller achievable goals — Suppose you get the date sheet of your exams. Instead of taking it all once, take one sub at a time and in that, take one chapter at a time.
2. Write down your goals — be specific about what you want to do and the exact time. For example, I’ll start studying the Mathematics chapter, Sets at 7:05 PM.
3. Follow the Pomodoro Technique — This positively helped me. Do the task for 25 mins and take a 5 mins break. This way, you are not over-exerting your brain, and to be honest, you will tend to focus better.
4. Reward yourselves for each of the small wins — Instead of taking a break only after finishing the entire subject, give yourself some reward ( a small 5-minute break, a cup of coffee, a walk or whatever you feel rewarding).
5. Keep timers — Whenever you need a break, keep a timer and do a hard stop when the time’s up.
6. Keep away the distractions — Distractions can vary for all. Mostly, it is a phone. So what I personally followed was to uninstall Instagram and YouTube during my exams.
7. Don’t be too hard on yourself — We are all humans, and it is not easy sticking to something new from day 1. If you scroll an extra minute, instead of extending the deadline, hit stop and restart. (Don’t let your brain fool you!)
8. Use the “2-minute rule” — If something can be done in less than 2 minutes, do it immediately, don’t waste a second thinking.
9. Focus on the end goal — Reminding yourself why you started (could be exams, career, or anything). I wrote it on a paper and stuck it to the wall so that I see it whenever I tend to get distracted. It helped me get back to focus.
10. Tell a confidant — I shared my daily goals with my best friend. I also told her when I missed some. That also helped me stay on track.

I followed this pattern regularly until I no longer needed it. It was not an easy way. For me, especially uninstalling the apps I spend the most time on was very difficult. I tended to go back to them (tbh, I even installed them in my initial 2–3 months), but eventually, I put the hard stopon that, as I had a goal to achieve and I started focusing on it. Now, I automatically uninstall them whenever I have a priority task in hand. It helps me focus better.

These thoughts didn’t come overnight. I had been pondering overcoming procrastination for a really long time, mainly due to the long-term stress buildup. I took help from books like Atomic Habits (by James Clear) and Eat that Frog! (by Brian Tracy) and tried to follow the suggestions in the ways I can.

The key is: Don’t pressure yourself to follow someone, find your own small ways to start, just don’t quit.

If you’re like me, you know the “just five more minutes” trap all too well. Turns out, our brains are cleverer than we think. With the right tricks, even a procrastinator can get things done without being exposed to endless torture. It’s messy, imperfect, and slow, but it works wonders.

And hey, if I can do it, so can you! Trust yourself and the process.

Hope I helped at least a few of you.