Tonight when I was doing some research on procrastination, I came across Steven Pavalina’s blog (stevenpavalina.com). It is a fascinating site full of informative articles. In one of Steven’s best articles, he proposed one interesting regime to success: 30 days trial for anything. I sincerely agree with that.
I am a fan of self-experiment. During the past month, I put myself on a tough test: can I lose 20 lb of weight simply by exercise and calorie restriction? Happily, the answer is yes. I lost 20 lb within a month, an unprecedented achievement that deserves applause. This is an example of achieving success in 30 days.
Starting from this week, I am trying to reduce procrastination. Frankly, I have no idea how to do it. I have read a lot of online materials and studied several scientific papers. I understand biological and psychological mechanism about procrastination, and I know all the treatments such as time management (I even had a PDA), prioritizing tasks, do it now, and other fancy techniques. But I just cannot implement them on myself. I need some innovative ways to fix myself.
After reading several posts in Steven’s blog, I found one experiment that may be useful to solve the procrastination. It is rising earlier in the morning.
Yes, this may seem irrelevant to procrastination treatment. Getting up early in the morning may give you extra hours that day, but how this relates to building a good working habit? I don’t know. I just want to try it. This is one small thing I have been thinking about for a long time. With these extra hours, I can do more readings and writings to improve my English and gain more knowledge.
Like the weight loss program, my procrastination treatment has two components. One is to get up earlier, the other is to reduce the internet usage down to less than half an hour during the day. The later is obvious and scientifically justifiable. Frequently visiting the internet distracts people from work. The short span and lack of concentration is the source of anxiety and procrastination. One just cannot focus on the job and don’t have enough time to do the job.
Rising earlier may give me one hour more every day; and reducing the internet usage will improve my productivity. Both of the treatment components have little to do with scheduling, planning, or prioritizing tasks. Well, they may be viewed as time management skills, but not in a traditional sense. They are not specifically tied with any tasks. It is more like a lifestyle modification.
It only takes 30 days. A brand new man is not far away.