Procrastination is the thief of time. They say time is money, so a procrastinating blogger is a broke blogger. Fortunately, it is a habit that can be conquered. Below are ways one can conquer it and make some good money start coming in.

Don't put undue pressure on yourself by thinking of writing the perfect post

If you have your mind fixed on writing the perfect post, you would probably feel overwhelmed by the work ahead of you. We are imperfect creatures who can only do imperfect things. You can write a good post, even a great one. But wanting to write the perfect post could get you mentally stuck in the preparation mode perpetually. You might keep postponing getting down to the real work because you are scared of the impossible goal you have set for yourself.

Cure Yourself of the impostor syndrome

People who suffer from the impostor syndrome have feelings of inadequacy so strong that they fear that people would soon unmask them and discover that they are a fraud. Although they may be successful, something in their heads keeps telling them that they have not earned the recognition they have. Because of this, they have good ideas and great plans but are afraid to commit themselves to them and do the work required to actualise them. Because of this, while they are always planning to do important work in their heads, they take on activities that are less risky so that they are not "discovered as the fraud they are". Some may even begin to sabotage their own efforts so that they can have an excuse for their failure. For example, if they are students, they may miss a test or two so that they can use it as an excuse for why they did not pass a course. A writer who suffers from this may keep on writing unimportant things while really wishing to commit themself to something really important.
The truth is if a person does not write those things that they really want to write but keep doing mediocre things just to be safe, their biggest fears eventually become real. Soon, without good work to show, they really become nobodies.
The fact is that when people work hard , they get better result than when they do not. So put in the right amount of work and grow. Steemit as a platform helps you do just that. Of course, you will not always get the kind of feedback that you want for your work. There will be both good and bad days. But as long as you consistently put in the required work , soon you will get the shine that you deserve.

Go hard at the things that motivate you

What do you find interesting? The answer can't be "everything". If you keep choosing things that you are not motivated to write on just because they are in a profitable niche, you might just keep moving from one to the other. You are more likely to finish writing something on a subject you find interesting than one you don't.
Motivation can sometimes be a scarce resource. So when you have it, it must be put to productive use. You do not want to just scratch the surface of a subject you know so much about. This is your field and the world needs you to give it your best. You have learned a lot from people who are experts in other areas. If you do not give your best now that it is your turn to educate others, it would just be unfair.

Break down your writing into tasks and mini tasks

You have that essay in front of you. The work of writing it seems enormous, really scary. Relax, and focus on the tasks instead of the whole project. Break the whole writing process into tasks. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a step. Walking a kilometer might be nothing to you, but if you focus on the number of footsteps it takes to cover it, you would probably be afraid to take the first step.
Just focus on each task at a time. How many sources are you consulting? Go ahead and gather them. Read each of them one by one. As you do, jut down useful information. You can then create your outline and begin the writing proper. If you focus only on the task before you, before you know it, you are at the final stage which is proofreading and editing. The key is to focus on tasks and mini tasks instead of the whole seemingly humongous project. This way you can conquer the fear that leads to procrastination

Do not be afraid of a bad first draft

The first draft almost always does not look pretty, but it is an unavoidable part of the writing process. This is why we have a stage called proof reading and editing. If you are waiting for when everything is so organised in your head so that when you eventually write, the first draft will be the last draft, you may wait forever. That is what procrastinators do. It is on paper that everything will transform into what you want.

Be accountable to someone

A lot of us were raised to function in a structured environment. We don't know how to work in an environment were there are no rules, rewards, punishments and deadlines. All through school, we achieved almost nothing without supervision. Procrastinators were able to function in that environment because even if they did things late, as long as they beat deadlines they were fine. They even made it through college with varying degrees of success. Many went on to join the labour market and have managed to have successful careers even as procrastinators because they have structure that checks their excesses.
Many writers do not have this kind of structure because they are self-employed. They therefore have to create that environment by themselves. The environment that will make them do things when they are supposed to. If you can't be accountable to yourself, then you must find someone you will be accountable to. I promised a close relative weekly allowance to make myself work harder. It is a trick I use motivate myself to write weekly. I also belong to a whatsapp group of steemians. It is not too big so we are able to encourage one another. I see how many articles these colleagues churn out weekly, so I don't want to lag behind. It is like being in school again and they are like my class mates. This works better for me than things like apps and alarms that some people use to remind themselves to work. You have got to figure out the best strategy for you.

Conclusion

You cannot make the habit of procrastination disappear all of a sudden. But with the right steps you can gradually release it's tight hold on you. And really, one has no choice but to conquer it if success is the aim. The steps discussed above can help one succeeed if they are applied.

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