The commitment contract
Procrastination is a powerful force. Quite often, it’s too powerful for us, preventing us from taking action in the way we would like.
One of the keys to overcoming procrastination is to allow ourselves to build systems, structures and relationships that give us the means to overcome the impulse to procrastinate. This piece from the The Economist provides a great example of a ‘commitment contract’, using the example of one of the most common New Year Resolutions – the desire to quit smoking.
If you are already struggling to make progress with your New Year Resolutions, try to think about ways that you could change the definition of what you are trying to achieve. Try to focus more on what you might lose. Try to involve others so that you don’t want to let them down. Try to put some form of external stimulus in place that keeps you going when it might be easier to put things off.
New Year Resolutions aren’t easy to achieve. But they’re not quite as difficult or as hopeless as you might fear.