Procrastination is all too common in business. You might have grand plans that you believe will improve some aspect of your company—and will ultimately lead to an increase in your bottom line—but you keep putting them off. Why?
A few typical reasons for procrastinating include:
- You have another project that’s taking up a lot of time
- You’re working on something that’s more interesting
- You consciously avoid carrying out your plans out of worry that something will go wrong
- “Emergencies” keep coming up that need to be taken care of first
The price of delaying
The cost of procrastination depends on what you’re putting off. For example, you may know that you need a website overhaul, but you’ve been delaying for whatever reason—you’re not sure what to include on the new website, you haven’t decided on a designer, you’re worried about making big changes, etc.
However, the longer you put it off, the more visitors will end up on your old, outdated website, and the higher the likelihood they’ll decide not to do business with your company. You’re losing out on both current and future customers this way—because they’ll probably go to your competitors instead of waiting for your redesign.
How to conquer procrastination
The best cure for “I’ll-do-it-later syndrome” is a solid action plan. When you decide that something needs to be done, come up with a set of goals for defining your plans, implementing and executing the necessary steps, and measuring the results.
Knowing exactly where you’re going with a plan makes it easier to get started—and to follow through. So cross procrastination off your to-do list, and start moving toward your goals today. Even a small step in the right direction, like contacting a service provider for more information, can build enough momentum to keep going.