Procrastination is not an illness or disease and it doesn’t require medical intervention, but it can be a real source of frustration, tiredness and it can cause high stress levels.

Procrastination is a terrible habit and it can be destructive, not only to the procrastinator but also to their direct family and friends.

Putting things off is not uncommon. In fact, most of us at some point in our lives have put a task on hold. This is not a problem if it’s only now and then because sometimes there are jobs that need to be prioritised. However, if you are a chronic procrastinator then it can be big problem.

If a job has to be done, it has to be done. That isn’t going to change and once it’s done, it’s done, so why not just do it now?

There are various reasons why people procrastinate. Sometimes it’s the fear of failure and disappointment, thinking that a task can be done better if more planning is involved. However, the problem with procrastinators is that this prolonged planning period is usually filled with mundane and irrelevant tasks.

Before they realize it, the real deadline has arrived and they are finally forced to work on the job. Unless that person is a genius or has superpowers, the work is almost always messily done and is usually not satisfactory.

There is no such thing as failure. You either get what you need to achieve or you benefit by learning something along the way.

Some procrastinators put tasks off because the unknown turns them off. What you can do to face this is to muster the courage to take a step forward anyway and keep a positive outlook. Most “unknown” situations don’t really turn out as bad as we initially thought.

Below are some tips to help procrastination.

1. Try not to take on too many jobs at the same time. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and this can cause you to do nothing.
2. If you are given a difficult job to complete and you don’t know where to start, break it down into more manageable chunks and work through one at a time.
3. A great tip is to do the unpleasant jobs first, just get them out of the way so that you feel more motivated to tackle the other jobs.
4. Don’t forget to reward yourself for little accomplishments. Perhaps work for a couple of hours and then have a nice cup of tea or coffee and a 15 minutes break.
5. It is easy to allow yourself to be distracted so impose rules on yourself. If it helps, then let others know about it so they can tell you if they catch you drifting.

Essential oils can help you find the motivation to make a start!

Below I have listed some essential oils that are motivating:

• Lavender
• Clove
• Rosemary
• Grapefruit
• Bay
• Bergamot
• Tuberose
• Black Pepper
• Cardamon
• Corriander
• Pine
• Bay
• Cypress

Please refer to my article Where Can Essential Oils Be Used for tips and advice on how essential oils can be used.