How to do the things you don't want to do

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In life, and especially in business, there are often things that we must do, but which we don’t really want to, and it can be a struggle to deal with them, which is why I’ve put together some tips to help you really get to grips with those tasks you’d rather not do and get your head in the game.

Do you really need to do them?
Okay, so before we go any further, it’s worth thinking about whether you really need to do those least enjoyable tasks. For example, you may think you need to do your own bookkeeping, but could a business accountant do it for you? Or you may feel like you need to learn SEO to maintain your company’s visibility online, but is there a freelancer who can do that for you? Eliminate those tasks you actually don’t have to do and you will already lighten your load.

Find your why
If it is a task that really needs to be done by you, try to find your why. For example, if you need to attend a conference, think about all of the numerous benefits of doing so from meeting new people in your industry and building contacts to improving brand visibility, Ultimately, your why would be to grow your business, and that is surely worthwhile. Basically, distill all of the reasons you need to do a thing into its most basic and vital element and you will hopefully have a bit more motivation to do so.

Image credit: Ylanite Koppens from Pexels

Conquer your fear
Often when you really don’t want to do something, it’s because you’re afraid; afraid of messing it up and failing; afraid of missing out on doing something more enjoyable; afraid you simply aren’t good enough, If you dan get to the root of your fear, you can work on accepting it and ultimately overcoming it.

Just do a little bit
Something that can really help you get stuck into a task you’d rather avoid is just starting it. Tell yourself that you’ll work on it for just 2 minutes, and if after that time, you still don’t want to do it, you can move on to something else. Most of the time, once you’ve gotten started, it will be a bit easier to continue with your task until it is finished, and the next time you come to do the same thing, it will be just a little easier.

Do it in chunks
Alternatively, you could try completing the task in small chunks, Spend 15 minutes on it, then get up and do something else for 15 minutes before coming back to it, and repeat. Because it won’t ve taking all your attention all of the time, it will be easier to sink into it and get things done.

Embrace the fact that it sucks
Sometimes, just telling yourself that life is not all roses and sometimes we need to do things that suck to move us forward and help us grow can provide enough grit for us to get through those least-loved tasks.

Time to do that thing you’ve been putting off!