How To Stop Being Lazy: 7 Powerful Steps To Overcome Procrastination
Reading Time: 26 minutes Want to stop feeling lazy all the time? Are you looking for effective ways to stop yourself from procrastinating?
I remember there was a time in my life when I wouldn’t do anything the entire day. I would be too lazy to:
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- Get schoolwork done.
- Work out or eat healthily.
- Invest in my personal development.
“Some days the only thing I did from the moment I’d wake up till hitting the bed was playing video games. I didn’t care for anything else. It got to the point where I was too lazy to even play video games anymore.” – Sergios R.,
I can relate to Sergios! When I was in University, I became so burnt out and stressed that I skipped an entire week of classes just to play GTA San Andreas and feel sorry for myself.
Even now, many years later I still have my lazy days every now and then, but I’d figured out how to stop procrastination and feeling lazy by accomplishing what I need to do to achieve my goals.
Here are 7 powerful steps to take in order to stop being lazy all the time and get things done.
1. Admit that you’re acting Like A lazy person.
The first and most crucial part of overcoming laziness is to stop lying to yourself and admit that you’re acting like a lazy person or a procrastinator.
Once you admit it, then you can overcome it.
But first, make sure that you don’t confuse the terms of being tired and being lazy. If you feel tired all the time, it makes sense to feel lazy as you don’t have the mental and physical energy to do stuff.
I’ve written a step-by-step article on how to have more energy.
2. Make a schedule or a to-do list.
You can either do it the night before or first thing in the morning.
Start by writing down what you need or have to accomplish throughout the day to call it a “productive day”.
Write everything that pops up in your head, from the most important to the least.
Then, circle the 3-5 things that you MUST accomplish. Then split them down into smaller, actionable steps.
Let’s say that you have to study for an exam and you have to read 300 pages in 2 weeks.
So, an example of smaller, actionable steps would be:
300 pages in 2 weeks are 21 pages a day. Then, let’s say you are studying 4 hours a day.
Alright then, to reach your goal of 21 pages a day you need to read 5.25 pages an hour.
Do you see? Automatically doesn’t that already feel better and less stressful?
Because now you aren’t focusing on the 300 pages you have to read, but rather on reading 5 pages an hour.
By breaking down a big goal into smaller tasks, firstly, it’s not going to feel so overwhelming, and secondly, it’s going to motivate you to keep going.
Each time you hit a checkpoint, your confidence grows. In the example above, you might even read 10 pages in an hour, so you’re progressing much faster toward your goal.
Confidence is largely about momentum. It’s not about big wins, it’s about many frequent wins, back to back.
Focus on daily tasks looking into the week or so.
3. Figure out your “why.”
The #1 reason why you are so lazy is that you most probably don’t even care about your goals.
If you figure out what you want in life and why you want it, it’s going to make it easier to just go for it.
There are 4 different questions that I have sat down and asked myself when there was a moment in my life when I was being super lazy, unmotivated, and procrastinated even taking a shower.
- How would my life be in 5 years if I continue doing the same things I do on a daily basis?
- How would it worsen my life conditions, my relationships with myself and others, my health, my financial situation, and so on?
Then I took a piece of paper and a pen, and started to visualize my self in these conditions.
This isn’t beating yourself up, rather it’s a wake-up call to see if I am on the right path I want to be in life.
This is going to be 100% uncomfortable at first. But try and see the positive out of it. Then, ask yourself these questions.
- How would my life be in 1 year if I implemented a routine, and stick to it? Would it bring me closer to my goals?
- How will life improve not only for me but for the people I love the most?
A very vivid example that stuck with me was when Rob Dial asked his audience in one of his speeches:
“How many of you believe that there is a 0% chance to make 1 million dollars this year legally?”
Almost all of them raised their hand. Then he asked again:
“What’s the percentage of chance of you making 1 million dollars this year legally, and if you don’t, everyone you love is going to get killed?”
All of them said 100%.
Everyone in the room went from 0% chance to 100% chance. Why? The goal didn’t change nor the time limit did. What changed was the REASON for accomplishing the goal.
If you figure out what your goal is and you figure out your why, laziness stops to exist.
4. Remove ALL distractions.
I say this all the time, but, I’m almost 100% that when you’re being “lazy” you aren’t just staring at the seiling or watching the clouds go by the entire time.
What do you do? You’ve most probably figured out a way (or many ways) to keep yourself busy and distracted from doing what you need to do.
My guess? You are either watching TV and Netflix, or you are on your phone mindlessly scrolling through Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Tik Tok, and what other Social Media platform there is.
If you remove these distractions, then you won’t have anything to make an excuse for, so might as well go ahead and do what you have to do.
Make a conscious effort to keep distractions as a minimum:
- Set boundaries with others by letting them know you won’t be available in the next few hours.
- Set your phone on Do Not Disturb or turn off the volume and put it away so you don’t see it while you’re working.
- If you struggle with gaming, put away your controller so you don’t see it. The same applies to watching TV, put away the remote.
- Try not to use your phone the first hour of waking up. Don’t clutter your mind with other people’s problems and negativity.
5. Set Moderation Rules with yourself.
If you enjoy playing video games, watching Netflix, scrolling social media, going outside with your friends, that’s great! You don’t have to completely stop doing what you love, but you should set some parameters to how often you’ll spend time with them.
Make a rule that you won’t do this activity until you’ve spent 4 hours being productive.
Or if you don’t finish certain important tasks for the day.
Make a habit of first accomplishing your daily tasks, and then have your free time and you can do whatever you want. This will improve your willpower and self-confidence.
6. Get others to keep you accountable.
If you feel that you can’t keep yourself accountable, get a friend or a family member to be that accountability partner.
When you need the motivation to take action, that person is going to be there to hold you accountable for accomplishing that task.
This piece alone helped me finally take my body and fitness levels more seriously. My friend and I went on a fitness journey together and did all we could to help each other. That held me accountable to get it done.
7. Truly enjoy your “lazy” time.
An added bonus of setting rules and getting an accountability partner is that your “lazy” time will be more enjoyable and guilt-free.
You won’t have to worry about the things you have to do and you won’t beat yourself up for not doing them.
Free time is super crucial for me as it helps me relax and recharge from a long day. A tip I can give you is to fully disconnect from the work you were doing.
This “lazy” time is a time you created entirely for yourself and for the things you love doing, so make the most out of it!
If you are feeling that you can’t enjoy relaxing, or anything for that matter, the problem may be a bit deeper than just lack of motivation.
Don’t struggle alone – get affordable counseling here.
7 powerful steps to take in order to stop being lazy – Conclusion
If you had the courage to read this entire article, you are probably not as lazy as you think.
A truly lazy person would never look into improving themselves or becoming more productive.
Here’s the PDF version of this article with a checklist.
Save it or print it out so you have it for your daily life and for the next time when you get stuck in laziness and procrastination.
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