We all have bad habits we’re guilty of. Whether it’s spending time watching videos on YouTube or neglecting work until the deadline, we all struggle at some point.

People come up with all sorts of creative excuses to not do something. Too tired, too stressed out, today is not the right day, it’s the weekend…

Procrastination is not just a bad habit, though. It can lead to serious consequences like hampering growth and learning.

When you procrastinate, you start denying yourself the benefits of taking up challenges, learning new things and gaining experience.

Fortunately, it’s not a bad habit that can’t be broken. With the right measures, it becomes extremely simple. Here’s what you should do:

1.     Break Down Your Targets

One of the reasons we procrastinate is because we overwhelm ourselves with tasks we cannot do. Things we can’t handle force us to stop functioning.

If you’re due to have a Skype meeting and call a client that you’re not looking forward to, prioritize. Call the client when you come into work and schedule the meeting the next day if you can.

This way, you won’t feel overwhelmed about having two meetings in one day.

If you’re working on a big project, see if you can delegate tasks. Ask for help if you need it and focus on working on the smaller ones first. When you work on smaller tasks, you’ll finish more quickly and gather some momentum.

2.     Punish Yourself

Creating punishment for your deadline is one way to motivate yourself. For every task you don’t complete by a certain period of time, penalize yourself.

It can be anything. Get creative.

For example, let’s say you’re supposed to make a list of all the projects completed in the previous month and submit it to your supervisor by the weekend. If you don’t complete the list, tell yourself you’ll have to take the entire team out for dinner.

Sounds harsh (and expensive!), but it’s one of the best ways to motivate yourself.

In addition, you can even set up a reward system for when you accomplish tasks.

3.     Do it NOW

Yesterday, you said “tomorrow.”

Remind yourself that your work will pile up every day if you keep delaying. Being proactive isn’t often fun, but it paves the way for a better tomorrow.

Doing things today will lighten tomorrow’s workload.

Getting rid of bad habits isn’t easy, but it’s not impossible either.

Hall of Fame keynote speaker Steve Rizzo understands just how difficult it is to work in the corporate industry. Using his experience and words of wisdom, he has inspired and motivated thousands throughout the world.

Check out his books Motivate THIS! and Get Your SHIFT Together to get inspired and motivated today!