3175: A Guide to Overcoming Procrastination & Finding Focus by Leo Babauta of Zen Habits on Intentional Living

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[00:00:38] This is Optimal Living Daily, episode 3175, A Guide to Overcoming Procrastination and Finding Focus by Leo Babauta of ZenHabits.net.

[00:00:48] And I'm Justin Malik.

[00:00:50] Now, like all this week, I'm doing a flashback episode today, one that we probably both don't remember.

[00:00:57] So with that, let's get right to our next one as we optimize your life.

[00:01:05] A Guide to Overcoming Procrastination and Finding Focus by Leo Babauta of ZenHabits.net.

[00:01:13] We all procrastinate.

[00:01:14] The question is how or even whether we overcome the tendency to procrastinate and if we can find focus.

[00:01:21] This matters.

[00:01:22] Our lives are brief and limited and while we don't need to be productivity robots, running in fear of difficult tasks to distractions and comfort is not the best way to spend our lives.

[00:01:33] We can face these fears.

[00:01:34] We can learn to deal with them mindfully.

[00:01:37] And in doing so, we can develop an ability to return with courage to the work that matters the most to us, to create something important, something that helps the world at least in a small way.

[00:01:47] Distraction and running aren't useful habits.

[00:01:51] Let's learn to overcome them and find focus to create.

[00:01:55] The procrastination fears.

[00:01:57] Why do we run from hard tasks?

[00:01:59] Because of fears that we don't know what we're doing, that we're going to mess up and look bad, that we'll succeed and then have to face a scarier situation, that the task will be difficult and uncomfortable.

[00:02:11] Basically, we fear discomfort and uncertainty.

[00:02:15] We want comfort and certainty and distractions like email and social media and reading news and blogs are easy and we know how to do them very well.

[00:02:24] Distractions are always much more tempting than difficult work, much more comforting than facing fears.

[00:02:30] We all have fears, but our habit is to run from them.

[00:02:34] Avoid even thinking about them.

[00:02:36] Our minds are very good at this.

[00:02:38] We get distracted and forget completely about what we were supposed to be doing.

[00:02:42] Our minds are good at forgetting and getting lost.

[00:02:45] We try to focus, but then immediately we have an urge to switch to something else because staying is uncomfortable.

[00:02:52] Our minds love comfort, hate discomfort, and will run to comfort every time if we let them.

[00:02:58] So that's why we procrastinate.

[00:03:00] But how do we overcome this?

[00:03:02] Overcoming procrastination.

[00:03:05] Our minds are very good at running from discomfort and most of the time we don't even realize it's happening.

[00:03:10] We just have an urge to switch and follow the urge immediately.

[00:03:14] The trick then is to catch ourselves when we're about to switch.

[00:03:18] When the urge comes up to switch, we have to notice.

[00:03:21] Then we have to pause and deal mindfully instead of mindlessly with the urge.

[00:03:27] Here's how.

[00:03:28] Number one, create a practice space.

[00:03:31] Do an unprocrastination session once a day to practice.

[00:03:35] Pick an important task.

[00:03:37] Any will do.

[00:03:37] One you've been procrastinating on is a good choice.

[00:03:40] Set a timer for five minutes or ten if you feel ambitious.

[00:03:44] Commit to doing nothing but your important task for that five minutes.

[00:03:48] Number two, don't let yourself switch.

[00:03:52] Clear distractions and have nothing that you can do except this one task.

[00:03:55] Your single tasking.

[00:03:57] When you get the urge to switch, when not if, notice this and don't act on the urge.

[00:04:03] We can feel an urge and not act on it.

[00:04:05] How liberating.

[00:04:07] Number three, stay with the urge.

[00:04:09] Instead of acting on the urge, instead of ignoring the urge, just stay with it.

[00:04:14] Sit still and feel how it feels.

[00:04:17] Notice the fear of this task that you're facing.

[00:04:20] Notice discomfort, boredom, dread, feeling intimidated or overwhelmed

[00:04:25] or confused or incompetent.

[00:04:27] Just stay with it and be curious about the physical feeling.

[00:04:31] What does the energy in your body feel like?

[00:04:34] And number four, return to the task.

[00:04:37] After sitting for a minute with the urge and the discomfort, they'll probably die down.

[00:04:41] Simply return your focus to your task.

[00:04:44] You didn't scratch the itch and the itch wasn't that big of a deal.

[00:04:48] By working on this once a day, you can begin to develop trust that you'll be okay if you don't scratch the itch.

[00:04:54] That you'd be able to handle the urge without acting on it.

[00:04:56] That you'll be fine if you deal with the discomfort of a difficult task.

[00:05:00] This is quite an accomplishment.

[00:05:02] Finding focus.

[00:05:04] Focusing on one thing is an incredibly difficult thing to do.

[00:05:07] Whether you want to focus on writing a report or a book chapter, focus on drawing or practicing music,

[00:05:13] focus on reading or meditating on your breath, your mind is in the habit of switching to something else.

[00:05:20] Focusing then is a matter of practicing staying.

[00:05:24] In the unprocrastination session I described, we talked about how to practice staying.

[00:05:28] In addition, I'd like to offer a few more practical tips.

[00:05:32] Number one, have a deeper motivation.

[00:05:35] The thing you are focusing on shouldn't just be nice to do, but should really feel meaningful to you.

[00:05:41] Number two, remember your motivation as you get started.

[00:05:44] This task doesn't just have fear in it, there's a great deal of love as well.

[00:05:49] Let the love drive you past the fear.

[00:05:52] Number three, use external motivation if needed.

[00:05:56] While love is the best motivator, sometimes you just aren't feeling up to it.

[00:06:00] So use external deadlines and accountability.

[00:06:02] Promise to email something to a friend or colleague by a deadline, or you have to do something embarrassing.

[00:06:08] Put your reputation on the line, join an accountability group.

[00:06:11] Don't let yourself off the hook.

[00:06:14] And number four, allow yourself to get into flow.

[00:06:17] This is the state of mind where you are lost in the task.

[00:06:20] It's easy to only be halfway into a task with your mind flitting around and wanting to do something else.

[00:06:26] But if you can get fully into a task, you'll truly love doing it.

[00:06:30] That means clearing all distractions and really putting your mind into the task.

[00:06:35] I find it helpful to have a challenging task and one that requires me to visualize.

[00:06:39] For example, if I'm writing a story, I should be imagining how the story is going visually, not just thinking about the words.

[00:06:46] Focus isn't a magical quality that you can just acquire.

[00:06:50] It's a skill that takes daily practice and you get better at it but never completely master it.

[00:06:55] You'll slip up and get discouraged, but you can just practice some more.

[00:07:00] In the end, all the practice will be worth it because you learn to focus on the things that truly matter.

[00:07:06] And that is a life worth living, in my experience.

[00:07:14] You just listened to the post titled A Guide to Overcoming Procrastination and Finding Focus by Leo Babauta of Zen Habits.net.

[00:07:22] And as I mentioned at the top of the show, yesterday's reading reminded me so much of an email I recently received from a listener.

[00:07:28] And I want to share it with you for the sole purpose of giving you some additional inspiration and so you can see how someone actually took what they heard and applied it.

[00:07:36] So here we go.

[00:07:38] I started listening to your old podcast about a year ago and admittedly, after all this time, I'm only on episode 81, but your podcast has changed my life nonetheless.

[00:07:47] Optimal Living Daily was the first podcast I'd ever listened to and in addition to that, it's the reason I quit my job and started my journey down a path to improve my life.

[00:07:57] I used to work in data entry for a defense manufacturing company for years, but I never finished getting my college degree and was constantly limited in my opportunities for advancement.

[00:08:07] I kept wanting to go back to school to finish my degree, but only because I didn't want to have that as a roadblock in my future anymore and not because it's something I actually wanted to do.

[00:08:16] I didn't even know what degree I wanted.

[00:08:18] I just decided I needed a degree to get by in life.

[00:08:21] I'd poured thousands of dollars into tuition money already, changed my major twice and was taking a break to try and decide where I wanted to sink the rest of my funds.

[00:08:30] When I started listening to your podcast, I decided I needed to take a step back and reevaluate what my priorities were.

[00:08:36] Episode 1, Why I Walked Away from My Six-Figure Career by The Minimalists, really got me hooked on the idea that I should stop centering my life decisions around money and I might not have ever found that article without you.

[00:08:49] I ended up working hard for the next four months, vigorously paying off what was left of my $35,000 credit card debt.

[00:08:55] And once it was gone, I quit.

[00:08:58] I was fortunate that I was in a position financially with the help of my boyfriend that I could be without work for some time.

[00:09:05] So I went on the search for my dream job.

[00:09:07] I had many ideas, but none that really took flight.

[00:09:09] So I started volunteering with a couple of nonprofit organizations in San Diego.

[00:09:15] I did community cleanups with I Love a Clean San Diego and habitat restoration with the San Diego Audubon Society.

[00:09:22] I also started volunteering to help out at a kennel facility for an animal rescue called Animal Pad.

[00:09:27] I had the freedom to choose what type of volunteering I wanted to do, and this led me to realize that it's easy to do what you're truly passionate about when money is no longer a factor.

[00:09:38] I ended up volunteering more and more with the Animal Pad.

[00:09:41] I realized a lot of these dogs would really benefit from some basic training.

[00:09:45] Things like potty training them, helping them learn not to bark excessively and training them to wait at the door and not bolt out of it were all things that could help a dog stay adopted.

[00:09:55] So I started learning how to train dogs and applying what I learned to our rescues.

[00:09:59] I'm now in the early stages of becoming a full blown professional dog trainer.

[00:10:04] I no longer care how much the average yearly salary is or if there are pension and 401k benefits.

[00:10:09] I no longer care if my friends and family will approve of my career change, unless we're concerned I was having a breakdown.

[00:10:16] And I have never been happier.

[00:10:19] You've made a significant impact on my life and my future and I just wanted to take some time out of my morning to let you know you are greatly appreciated.

[00:10:27] So there you have it.

[00:10:27] So amazing to hear if you have a story like this.

[00:10:30] It's actually rare for me to get emails like this.

[00:10:32] I mostly get pitches or collaboration requests.

[00:10:36] But I really love these kinds of emails.

[00:10:38] I don't know if I'll share more here on the show, but I wanted to share this one and got permission from her.

[00:10:44] I thought it was inspiring.

[00:10:45] So hopefully it was inspiring for you.

[00:10:47] But I'll do it for today.

[00:10:48] Have a great day.

[00:10:49] Great weekend if you're listening in real time and I'll see you tomorrow for Minimalist Monday where your optimal life awaits.