For The Procrastinator Go-Getter

Ask and you shall receive. Is it really that easy?

Simple? Yes.

Easy? No.

Asking for information—how to do something—is simple. However, it's usually much more difficult executing on the information.

Why is that? Is it because we are afraid of the answers? I don't think that's it.

It's one of two reasons.

One, we don't know how to ask, and two, we are afraid to ask.

One of my challenges has been to overcome procrastination. I kept asking myself, "Why do I procrastinate?"

I wasn't able to beat procrastination though so that had to be the wrong question.

A better question: "How can I overcome procrastination?"

When I started asking that, a couple of answers came to mind, probably because my awareness for a solution was top of mind.

I'll share with you a couple of things that resonated with me. Maybe you can relate it to something you're up against.

== (1) Get a coach and (2) start small ==

I invested in a marketing coach and she helped me get a few things done. But it didn’t last long.

The other solution was to start small. For me, that meant committing only 10 minutes a day to a dreaded task.

I've always wanted to get faster at reading and comprehension… but kept procrastinating at that too.

Thankfully, I stumbled across a reading program that only required 10 minutes per day of Reading for only 21 days.

Perfect. My kind of program. I bought it.

At first, I could get through around 260 words per minute. Two weeks later and I'm tracking about 540 words per minute!

All from a commitment of 10 minutes per day.

Being focused on 10 minute "chunks" allowed me to overcome procrastination.

The singer/actor Cher, while being interviewed, was asked about her exercise routine. She said "I don't like to exercise, so I told myself that I only have to do it for 10 minutes and then I can quit. What usually happens after 10 minutes is that I start feeling good and continue working out for another 30 to 45 minutes."

== (3) Hour of Power ==

I picked up this technique called the Hour of Power at a conference this past week.

You take one hour of your day and break it down into 15 minute segments. Each segment represents a task that will move you closer to your goal or desired outcome.

I haven’t tried this yet but planning to do it this month.

If you're battling procrastination on things that help you paint your "big picture," try that 10-minute commitment thing. I can honestly vouch that it's a "proven" tactic.

= (4) [The Laughter From Others On the Journey to] Better Questions =

By asking a better question I was able to wrestle with procrastination and win.

Back in my late 20s, I was working as an inside salesperson. I asked our Vice President of Sales and Marketing, "What do I need to do to sit in your chair as Vice President?"

To my surprise, he told me exactly what I had to do. I acted on his advice.

His advice proved to be fruitful. I achieved the position of Vice President of Sales at age 31.

That would have been nearly impossible this without his guidance.

We might be afraid of asking questions because of looking dumb.

Is there such a thing as a dumb question? Maybe in the eyes of others that want to ridicule.

Asking questions is a skill much like riding a bike.

When learning to ride a bike, there are wobbly moments and falls that bring laughter from our friends and yet we persist.

Think of asking questions as a skill. Through practice, your questions get better and better.

What kinds of questions are you asking?

Questions guide your thoughts. Your thoughts become actions and your actions become habits.

Let me leave you with this question. Who is teaching our children to ask questions?

Here's to questions that move us forward,d.

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