Why deadlines are effective
- They can reduce the likelihood that you will procrastinate.
- They help make your goals feel more concrete, by attaching them to a specific timeline.
- They help you pursue your goals and complete tasks in a timely manner by serving as a precommitment device.
- They can also help you get things done on time by providing you with structure.
MORE IDEAS FROM THE ARTICLE
- Deadlines should be concrete. You are much more likely to abide by concrete deadlines.
- Deadlines should be realistic. When choosing a deadline for a task, you should pick one that gives you a sufficient amount of time to complete the task.
- Deadlines should be meaningful. You should make sure that you can’t just ignore your deadlines, and that there is some motivation for you to adhere to it.
Though deadlines can often help you avoid procrastinating, research also shows that they don’t always work, and there are situations where increased flexibility can be better, in terms of personal productivity.
As such, you should always assess the situation at hand, in order to determine whether setting deadlines will help you or not.
RELATED IDEAS
A way to create less stressful deadlines is to break large projects into smaller tasks. Set a deadline for each task instead of just one final deadline.
Regularly spacing the deadlines out will give a sense of moving forward, which can motivate you to complete the task.
Create artificial deadlines for yourself. Understand that you can save yourself a load of stress by acting as if something is due earlier than it actually is.
Mentally, this creates a stress-free zone when there's a time crunch.
- Transfer money to your savings account every time you receive a paycheck
- Choose all your outfits for your week on Sunday and hang them in the closet in order
- Subscribe to a weekly fresh delivery of organic vegetables and fruits to your home
- Standardize the typical daily meals you like the most, saving time in cooking and grocery shopping
- Prepare your sports bag every night and put it in your car. If you prefer running the morning, leave your running shoes near the bed
- Automate all electronic gadgets to go into sleep mode at a certain hour
❤️ Brainstash Inc.