As I sit down to write this article, I am distracted by my cell phone, the television, my dog, and everything else in the world. It is so hard nowadays to put your life on pause and completely focus on the task at hand…especially when there are so many other things you would rather be doing.

You might currently be procrastinating as we speak. How many of you are still waiting until the last minute to go Holiday shopping…?

It is said that we as humans put off tasks simply because we are afraid of the outcome being failure. It is also said we have a need for distraction (ever wonder why you suddenly get “hungry” or “need to use the restroom” right before you dive into a huge project?) Yes; we all go through procrastination with even the smallest tasks such as calling to schedule a doctor’s appointment or taking your car for a car wash.

Here are some tips from the Me in Order Expert Organizers to help you tackle your procrastinating:

1. Eat the Frog

You’ve probably heard this saying from the infamous Mark Twain. The frog in this sense refers to the biggest, baddest, scariest task on your to-do list.

The frog is the task that you have zero motivation to start and the one that will probably end up giving you anxiety because you wait until the last minute to do it.

This is why you must eat the frog first. By tackling your hardest, most daunting task at the beginning of the day, the rest of your day will seem like a breeze. This is simply because you will not have to worry that you put off your frog until the last minute; the frog is complete and you can tackle the other projects you have.

2. Separate the big task into smaller tasks

 If your frog just seems way too much to chew, start by separating the project into smaller, manageable tasks.

This is extremely important especially it comes to organizing a room in your house. If you are in the throws of organizing a garage, for example, start by separating the contents in the room into piles based on their category (this is known as macro organizing). Athletic gear goes in one pile; gardening equipment in another, and so on. Eventually you will find that the contents of the room separated into smaller, more manageable tasks that you can tackle by category.

Once this is done, then you can begin actually organizing the contents in the piles (known as micro organizing). For example, you can organize the contents of the power tools pile by size and function. As you complete each pile separately, you will find the organizing project as a whole is much less daunting and easier to manage.

3. Do something for 15 minutes…then see what happens

It’s important that you start somewhere…even if it is just for 15 minutes. Set a timer, put your phone on “Do Not Disturb” mode, and settle in for a full 15-minute block of work.

You’ll see that once you get through the first 15 minutes, you’ll want to keep going. It’s just like running or working out; once you get over the first “hump” you get your momentum up and at the same time you are able to get into a groove and eventually you complete the task at hand.

By committing to just 15 minutes of working on your project, you will become empowered to keep going.

 We all procrastinate; whether it be at work when you are assigned a project; completing everyday tasks such as running errands or Holiday shopping; or even organizing your home.

The giant task that sits in front of you can seem daunting, but thankfully, Me In Order is here to help you with your desire to put off important tasks.