Motivation waning? Rather stay in bed than work on your business? Chucking sickies but the boss is you? Simply feeling, meh?
YOU ARE NOT ALONE. So many people are feeling this right now. You know, that – “I gotta do a,b,c, and d but I just couldn’t be a,r,s and ed”.
It’s got a name – Pandemic Procrastination – or as they say in Australia, Pando Procrasto.
(For our Victorian friends, we support you completely, you are totally exempt from addressing your Pando Procrasto at the moment).
PANDEMIC PROCRASTINATION
We have all been to that draining place where you feel like everything is a mountain to be climbed, and once exciting encounters are now met with, “whatever”. When you don’t believe in anything you’re selling, the wins just won’t come in and everything will soon become like wading through cement. In the past few months, have you:
- Slept in when you should have gotten up and got going?
- Not answered calls that could have led to a win, with a little bit of effort?
- Not communicated with clients for five days or more?
- Cancelled a meeting and hid away instead?
- Not taken part in simple daily physical activities?
- Ignored emails that required action or interaction?
- Hid under the online doona? That is, stayed connected but with no activity?
Just one yes to any of the above means you need to RESET and REJUVENATE. But what about your team? Do you feel any of them are experiencing any of these Pandemic Procrastination symptoms?
WHAT TO DO
For many of us, there has been a huge energy decline lately. But there are also those that on the outside it looks like they’re killing it, but on the inside they’re feeling icky, nothing is flowing and they don’t know how to shift on back to that place of ease, flow and results.
But remember, ACTIVITY = RESULTS. And when we produce results our endorphins kick in and we hop back on the energy fuelled train of happiness and productivity.
Here are 6 tips to get out of the I couldn’t bothered head space, put pandemic procrastination well and truly to bed, and put simply, get stuff done.
1. WRITE A CAN DO LIST
Change your TO DO list to a CAN DO list. By doing this simple one word change, you instantly shift the mentality and outlook of your day. To Do is forceful and sounds a bit hard-line. Can Do is lighter and feels more fun, not to mention a cool challenge.
Write yourself a Can Do list and see if your attitude re-adjustment helps you get your mojo back. Also, consider the outlook of your colleagues and team, how are they travelling? Do they know how to stay motivated while working remotely?
2. THINK UNITS OF TIME, NOT DAYS WORK
From when you sit down at your desk at the start of your day up until shutdown time, can feel like it’s years away. Stop thinking about the end of the day and start thinking about the end of your unit of time. That is, divide your day into ½ hour unit blocks. That way if you’re working on a tedious task, you simply allocate it one, two or three units – whatever it takes to get it done. You then work your butt off for those units you have set and once completed, you have to longer think or worry about it. Additionally, you get to tick it off your Can Do list. Also, it makes you appreciate just how much work you can fit into a full day.
Think of this, if every unit is ½ an hour of time, an 8 hour work day will give you 16 units. How cool is that?!
3. GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE
Think of the mantra, life begins at the end of your comfort zone. While most would attest that they don’t enjoy being uncomfortable or even that they “don’t like change,” none of us would say that we don’t appreciate growth. We know on an innate level that growth is what it is all about. It is when we get out of our comfort zone that we stretch and grow. Our comfort zones are generally reliable places where we can catch our breath in a crazy world, but it’s easy to get stuck there without even realising that’s what’s happening. Everyone has a different idea of a comfort zone. Find yours and step out of it just once a day. You will spin out at what you can achieve – and those endorphins, they’ll sure to fire up again.
4. MIX IT UP
If you always check your emails first thing in the morning, still do that, it works for you, so keep it as part of your morning routine. However, if you always save the jobs you hate the most for the afternoon, try doing them in the morning. Monotony is the best friend of lethargy so don’t let the same same run of your day add to your can’t be bothered attitude. Mix up your day as much as you can. Brush your teeth on one leg. Try new foods. Talk to strangers.
5. GET A BUCK-IT BUCKET
You must accept that some days are going to be plane right crap. Sometimes you just have shitty days and you need to admit it and move on. Get yourself a BUCK-IT BUCKET and every few months you can have a BUCK-IT BUCKET DAY where you don’t do a thing. The important part of this is to embrace it though. Don’t try to work through a Buck-It Bucket Day – that will only make it worse because you will have a wasted a day doing nothing. If you’re going to waste a day, you might as well enjoy it.
6. INFECTIOUS POSITIVITY
There’s no shortage of negativity, especially in a pandemic. But there are plenty of ways you can spread positive vibes to counter all that bad energy. And thankfully, just as negativity is contagious, positivity is too — leading to increased motivation, better collaboration and higher productivity in your business. Consider these simple steps to action in your daily activities from today:
- Star the Day with – It’s Okay.
- Focus on the Good – however small.
- Find Humour – in hard situations.
- Turn Failures Into Lessons.
- Transform negative self talk into positive self talk.
- Focus on the the present – not what if (what if not?).
- Hang around positive people – avoid pessimists.
- Do a random act of kindness.
- #1 Positivity Tip: ASSUME GOOD INTENT!
How’s your day today?
How’s the productivity level of your team?
Do you know how to get them out of the can’t be bothered head-space?
Get your employees out of Pandemic Procrastination, call Healthy Business Builder 1300 833 574 or email info@healthybusinessbuilder.com.au for a confidential conversation.
