Want to Get That One Project Off Your Plate? Try This

Here is another valuable Management Tip of the Day from Harvard Business Review. To sign up for a free subscription to any/all HBR newsletters, please click here.

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All of us have tasks we don’t want to do. Maybe they’re boring or time-consuming or stressful — but we’ve still got to get them done.

o One way to push yourself is to involve other people. Delegate part of the task, complete the project with someone else, or simply be around others who are working (in a library or a coffee shop, say) — the positive social pressure can create accountability.

o If looping in other people doesn’t do the trick, pair that approach with another one, such as not letting yourself check email or social media until you’ve finished the project.

o Or you can plan your time around the task: Block off a few minutes every day, or a few hours every week, to make some progress.

No matter what, don’t let the unpleasant task keep lingering. The longer you put it off, the more it will wear on you, and the more unpleasant it will seem.

Adapted from “How to Motivate Yourself to Do Things You Don’t Want to Do,” by Elizabeth Grace Saunders

Here’s a direct link to dozens of other Management Tips.

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