What does procrastinate mean? According to the Cambridge English Dictionary:

procrastinate

verb [ I ]

UK /prəˈkræs.tɪ.neɪt/ US /proʊˈkræs.tə.neɪt/

to keep delaying something that must be done, often because it is unpleasant or boring:

I know I've got to deal with the problem at some point - I'm just procrastinating.

Synonym

dilly-dally old-fashioned informal.

Why are solopreneurs particularly prone to this. I believe it has many psychological aspects.

Often tied into self-belief. Many people leave a safe 9-5 job with a regular income to follow their passion and so they leave behind the safety net that goes alongside that. A daily structure, someone setting you tasks, a team to be part of, a manager to report to.

The physicality of leaving your home to travel to work.

They may suffer from Imposter syndrome. Why should people buy what I have to sell? What makes me an expert.

The procrastination may be the result of physical or mental burn out. Especially possible in the early day of a new business and with all the challenges of being totally responsible for your own income and structure.

You are now a solo player with no team to work with, bounce ideas around with and to be held accountable by, so you may find yourself unable to get going, putting off tasks and just generally feeling stuck.

The initial honeymoon period of being your own boss has certainly worn off.

So how do you turn it around and stop procrastinating?

• Ask yourself how the spell of procrastination benefits your solopreneur business? Simple answer is no!

• Who is responsible for your income? You. So, if you don't complete tasks needed to run the business and drive revenue how do you earn?

• How dangerous is not doing what you need to do to your business, relationships and future.

• Face the fear. Often Fear is causing you to procrastinate. There will be fear at some level even if only subconscious.

• Break the task down into small chunks and work through each turn. Complete each one fully before moving on to the next one.

• When are you most motivated morning or evening? Then move that task that is causing you to procrastinate, into your most productive time of the day.

• Contact someone in your support circle for help. Don't be afraid to say you are stuck and ask them for advice. Get laughing about procrastination. Get them to remind you how desperate you were to leave your job work, to focus on your passion, and now you are throwing it away for a fear of something that may never happen. It's just the Procrastination block that is preventing you to complete that key task.

• Tomorrow, you will wake up and your outlook will be completely different

• And if you attempt what is causing you to procrastinate, and it doesn't work that's fine, at least you have tried, and you have broken through your procrastination, and you are still standing.

• You will have another idea or take a different approach to your challenge and that will work, and you will kick yourself for not taking action and wasting so much time on an issue that you gave too much energy to and let it overwhelm you.

Selfcare to beat procrastination

Make sure you take regular breaks. Every twenty minutes get up from your computer and walk around.

Keep regular work hours. Switch off from work at the time you would have when you were 9-5.

Give yourself headspace.

See procrastination as warning that you need balance and that you may be overwhelmed.

You need to take steps to reduce the overwhelm.

Keep hydrated, water and or herbal tea breaks. Water topped up at your desk.

Wake up call on procrastination

Do you really want to go back to the 9-5? You became a solopreneur to live your passion and control your own destiny, don't give into procrastination.