Writing doesn't come easy for me. It's actually one of my least favorite things to do. As many of us do 
with tasks that take us outside our comfort range, I usually leave it until the very last minute. It sometimes takes me days to come up with just the right title or the beginning paragraph and often it is still not quite “right." At times, the task of writing feels overwhelming.
I would guess there are many candidates who feel this way about their goal of becoming an effective and successful agent. For example, they might love selling because they are socially adept, but find studying and taking tests more difficult. Trying to pass the licensing exam may seem like an unreachable goal, they leave the studying until the last minute. In turn, procrastination causes many people to fail.
What can we do to avoid the pitfalls of procrastination? I recently read an article in Psychology Today that spoke more about laziness than procrastination, but the solution proposed works well for both. The following is an excerpt from the article:
"Dealing with our own mind is a bit like dealing with a small child. It doesn’t always know what’s best, and our job is to take it by the hand compassionately and set it on the right path. With practice, inertia is relatively easy to overcome – at least compared to other mental roadblocks. The key, in my experience, is to stop arguing with the mind.
Most minds, like children, don’t switch gears easily. “Time to go to the gym,” you might say to yourself, to which your mind answers, no thanks, I’m fine where I am. The gym is far away, and it will take too much time, and everything there is really heavy, and do you really want to spend your day lifting heavy things?
And by the way, says your mind, you should be ashamed of yourself for laying on this couch.
It’s easy to get drawn into an argument with the mind, and it can stymie us with that bizarre combination of sloth and shame. Sometimes arguing works; sometimes it doesn't and you feel awful. But there’s an easier way – a lazier way: don’t engage in the argument.
When the thought of going to the gym (for example) seems overwhelming, try shifting your attention to something more manageable, like the first small step that starts you down the path. We may not be able to prevent lazy thoughts and urges, but we can control whether or not we focus on them.
You might tell yourself, "I don’t have to go to the gym right now, I only have to put on my shoes.” Once your shoes are on, the next task is simply to get to the car, and so on. Momentum will often take over if you can get your body moving in the right direction. Don’t worry that your mind isn’t in the mood, it will catch up later. Before you know it, you’ll be working up a sweat.
It takes practice, but I’ve found this approach to be quite effective. While you’re in the process of ignoring the bigger picture and taking small steps, it helps to divert your attention to something external, like music. It also helps immensely to frame your goals in terms of what you want (I want to be physically fit) rather than what you don’t want (I don’t want to be fat).”
I vividly remember reading about Ed Viesturs (a famous mountaineer) who would continually break down each climb into 25- 50 yard segments. He would look ahead and find a rock or a snowdrift, and focus his attention on only reaching that landmark. He would then celebrate his small accomplishment and repeat the process. After doing this again and again, he would eventually find himself standing atop a 30,000-foot peak.
I am going to try this when writing my next blog. Ironically, this is the same advice I frequently prescribe as a psychologist, but I had not thought about it in broader terms.
If we can help agents (and ourselves) see the goal as a process, it sets us free to break that process down into small, manageable steps. The security of knowing that we’ve successfully completed one small step makes it much easier to take the next step. Like Ed Veisturs, we’ll also be amazed at the significant things we accomplish!
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Editor's Note: This article was written by Dr. David Mashburn. Dave is a Clinical and Consulting Psychologist, a Partner at Tidemark, Inc. and a regular contributor to WorkPuzzle.
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