I used to procrastinate from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to sleep.
So I am well familiar with how much frustration procrastination can be.
Thankful, I have learned and adopted multiple frameworks and strategies that have helped me become much more productive and make progress toward achieving my personal and professional goals.
Hereβs my toolbox to beat procrastination and become 10x more productive:
Clear the Uncertainty
Humans arenβt designed to be very good at dealing with uncertainty.
Thatβs why more ambiguous tasks tend to be more prone to procrastination.
The solution is to get clarity about how you will approach the task and what the outcome is.
Thereβs much less friction if you know you need to write the introduction to your research paper about Persian cat behavior, than if you didnβt knew what your paper is about or what the next action would be.
The truth is we waste so much time evaluating and thinking about the βperfectβ decision.
The result of that is that we often choose to not make a decision at all , and send the chore to our future selves. ( spoiler: your future self will postpone the decision as well)
This is the reason perfectionists are usually chronic procrastinators.
As the saying goes: βPerfect is the enemy of good.β .
A good project that you finish, is much better than a perfect project that you will never do.
Most of the time, if you remove the underlying uncertainty about a task, the friction becomes much lower and itβs much easier to start.
Here are some ways to get clarity:
Break it into small steps: When the challenge feels too big, itβs hard to get into action. Breaking the task into small steps helps clear that uncertainty. For example, letβs say writing a book:
Step 1: Research and decide what to write about.
Step 2: Open Google Docs and write 1000 words per day till finished.
Step 3: Edit, ask for feedback, and perfect the writing.
Step 4: Make a book cover and publish the book.
Step 5: Market the book.Ask βWhy am I avoiding this task?β: Itβs much more effective to address what friction is making you procrastinate on a task than to try to eliminate procrastination. When you become aware of what friction then you can do something about it. Is it because you fear not being able to do it right? Is it because you donβt know what you need to do, or how to do it? etc.
The Motivation Myth
I will start running, when I find the motivation.
I will start eating well, when I find motivation.
I will start reading books, when I find motivation.
Certainly, there is something wrong with this approach. Because it simply doesnβt work .
And hereβs the reason why it doesnβt work:
You donβt get motivated and go for a run. You go for a run and then get motivated.
Motivation is not sufficient. When you most need it, itβs not there .
Thatβs why you need discipline .

The good news is discipline is like a muscle. The more you do it, the more it grows.
Eat the Frog πΈ
βIf it's your job to eat a frog, it's best to do it first thing in the morning. And If it's your job to eat two frogs, it's best to eat the biggest one first.β
Mark Twain Share
It’s funny that when we have something hard we need to do, we come up with a dozen other things to do.
We find ourselves cleaning the room, making a coffee, checking email, just so we can avoid the uncomfortable thing we need to do.
This is a bad habit. The task will not get easier if you postpone it, or you will be less busy by then.
The Eat that Frog approach, suggests that we choose to do the hardest thing first .
First, it creates a break in procrastination. Now we are not allowed to choose to do other things before we do the hardest thing we need to do.
And second, it gives you a spark of confidence that follows you toward the day, knowing that you already accomplished that hard thing you said you were gonna do.
Instead of feeling anxiety all day, thinking about that task you are avoiding.

Bringing it home
A quick review:
Clear the Uncertainty: Most of the time, if you clear the underlying uncertainty, the friction becomes lower and it’s much easier to start. Break it into small steps.
The Motivation Myth: You donβt get motivated and go for a run. You go for a run and then get motivated. Motivation is not sufficient. You need discipline.
Eat that Frog πΈ: Do the hardest task first, not the other way around.
Choose one insight from today and take action on it.
Last weekβs newsletter was about theΒ fundamentalΒ principles to succeed with greatness in everything you do.
In case you missed it,Β here’s your chance to catch up β 3 Principles to Succeed with Greatness in Everything you Do
I hope you got something valuable in this edition of Curiosity Fuel, and thank you for reading, it means the world.
Itβs always an honor to be in your inbox, until next Sunday. π
β Idris Moura