StaircaseThis week’s Quick Tip is a method that helps me when I find myself unable to start an unloved task. There are those tasks that are just dreadful to think about, like filing the mail, doing your taxes, or cleaning out the garage.

Because you know you’ll have to spend hours and hours to get them completed, you cannot bring yourself to even start. But because you know you have to do them you have this big lump in your stomach. Procrastination symptoms!

The good news is that if you plan ahead and give yourself a big enough buffer, then you don’t have to spent too much time on these tasks. Per day that is.

Set those as your priority activity every day. That means they are the first thing you do, because they are important. And because you don’t like them, you commit yourself to not more than 30 minutes every day. Time will do the rest for you . So that little by little after 10 days you’ll have spent five hours and after 20 days, which is about the number of workdays of one month, you’ll have spent 10 hours on the dreaded tasks. This should be way enough time to tidy up your garage even in serious cases.

Consistency and focus go a long way even if you spend only little time every day.

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This is Quick Tip No 39.

photo credit: kennymatic via photopin cc