Is Procrastination Holding You Back?
When you look at your marketing to-do list, do many of the items on
it look
all too familiar? Have entries like "call Donna Sanchez"
and "follow up with
Floyd Corp." been copied from a previous week? Putting off
unappealing tasks may
be human nature, but for an entrepreneur, procrastination can be deadly.
Delays in contacting a prospect can lose the business to the competition.
Failing to get the word out about an upcoming event may forfeit dozens of
opportunities. Wasted marketing time can never be recovered. By the time you
realize you might not make your goal for the month, quarter, or year, it may
already be too late.
Finding tasks on your to-do list week after week is a clear sign you are
procrastinating, but it's not always this obvious. Can you identify with any
of
these situations?
1. Feelings of overwhelm. You have a backlog of work that
seems insurmountable.
You wake up in the morning already thinking about everything you must
accomplish
that day. It seems impossible to get it all done. If you are routinely
unable to
complete what's on your list in the time available, you may be creating the
problem yourself by putting tasks off week after week.
2. Making excuses. You find yourself constantly having to
make excuses to your
business buddies, referral partners, potential clients, or even your coach
about
why you never followed up on that great referral, that important sales call
wasn't made, the marketing package wasn't sent, or the proposal wasn't
written.
After a while, the excuses begin to sound flimsy, even to you.
3. Trivial pursuits. You notice that you are doing
unimportant chores --
rearranging your desk drawers, filing old business cards, shopping for just
the
right desk, surfing the Net -- while neglecting crucial marketing
activities.
4. Overflowing pipeline. A form of procrastination unique
to entrepreneurs and
salespeople is continuing to develop new leads instead of contacting the
prospects you already have. If you are spending more time attending
networking
events or reviewing lists of names than getting on the phone, putting your
fingers to the keyboard, or driving to appointments, this problem may be
yours.
If you ARE procrastinating, what then? Begin to change this habit by getting
in touch with your motivation to do better. What rewards, tangible and
intangible, do you get from your work? Remind yourself of that payoff on a daily basis.
Post a picture or note that represents those rewards to you on your calendar,
phone, or dashboard.
Break down each of the activities you are having trouble with into small
steps. Pick what seems like the easiest place to start, and block out time on your
calendar to make a beginning. You may find that once you are taking action,
the rest seems much less difficult than you had feared.
If you find that you really do have too much on your plate to have enough
time for marketing, it's essential that you cut back on some of your other
activities immediately. A business without marketing isn't a business; it's a
hobby.
Create more accountability for yourself by telling a buddy, support group,
or coach exactly what you plan to get done each week. Ask them not to accept
any excuses from you, and to remind you why you said you were doing all this in
the first place. You can partner in this way with a colleague by setting up a
weekly check-in where each of you reports to the other.
It may take time to break the procrastination habit, so give yourself
permission to fail a few times. Remember that even a small amount of progress may be
allowing you to achieve more than you ever have before.
About the author:
C. J. Hayden is the author of Get Clients NOW! Thousands of business owners and salespeople have used her simple sales and marketing system to double or triple their income. Get a free copy of "Five Secrets to Finding All the Clients You'll Ever Need" at http://www.getclientsnow.com
