Laziness is a worldwide phenomenon that has hampered human growth in several ways. Prolonged laziness is demotivating. You could end up missing deadlines and the continuous delay creates a lag between you and your counterparts. So, how to overcome laziness and procrastination? In this article, you’ll discover how to how to overcome laziness in the ten effective ways.
Table of Contents
How to Overcome Laziness:
1. Discover your purpose in life
It would be extremely cliché and philosophical to say so, but it is only true that everyone has come into this world for a reason. It is only up to us to discover what we are here for.
The unending feeling of purposelessness can make a person lazy, but as soon as he realizes his target it gives him a sense of direction and motivates him into action.
Charlie Chaplin, for instance, was born to entertain, Sachin Tendulkar was born to play international cricket and Nelson Mandela was born to revolutionize the lives of Africans. What immense fun, cricket, and justice would the world be missing on, had these people never come into action?
It is up to you to discover your passion and purpose and only then can you make your presence felt in this world. Discovering your true purpose in life is one way to overcome laziness in life.
Related: 14 Habits to Avoid for a Successful Professional Life
2. Do what you like!
In our everyday life, we see many people who are working on a job that they do not feel passionate about. This is one huge cause of laziness in the population because they get fed up of doing undesired tasks.
In my opinion, it is the shortest sad story because it curbs excellence and efficiency. Maybe economies do not thrive because many people are not doing what they are best at doing! Find the job that best suits your interests, this will not only help you get over your unavoidable lethargy but will also improve your work performance.
3. Start taking up responsibilities
Laziness is most likely to set in cases where an individual is ignoring his responsibilities and is constantly trying to buy himself some more time off. So, taking responsibility is one of the ways to overcome laziness in life. Also, remember that not taking responsibility is one of the obstacles to success.
Some people actually think that leisure is fun but that is only true to some extent, extended leisure is called sloth and it does not remain fun; it slowly starts eating a person on the inside with him not knowing it, therefore, it is important to realize when to put an end to your free time and when to pull up your socks.
4. Eat healthily
A study, conducted at the University of California tested two groups of rats; one group was given a healthy unprocessed diet while the other group was given an unhealthy (junk) diet (1). After three months it was observed that the group of rats that were fed junk gained weight and showed fewer signs of motivation than the other group of rats.
It is thereby essential for us to bid farewell to our unhealthy eating habits and start monitoring our diet for good. If your diet pattern reflects a lack of protein-rich foods then it could possibly be the reason why you are feeling down. Eat more of protein and less of high-fat and sugary items.
5. Get adequate rest
It is possible that your work routine does not enable you to get adequate rest. It is highly important for a healthy adult to take 7-9 hours of undisturbed sleep to be able to function at their best.
Moreover, reduce your hours on the screen for a better sleeping pattern. Our forefathers weren’t wrong in saying that early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.
6. Make sure you are not sick
Sometimes a person may be doing everything right yet may not be able to summon enough energy to perform his daily routine. In this case, one must consult a doctor as soon as possible because it could be a sign of internal sickness.
Often, fatigue is a symptom of infections and other health problems. If you are unable to reboot your system properly you must get this one checked to start an appropriate treatment at an early stage.
7. Do not rely on machines
Modern lives are increasingly made easy by technological advancements. Today, you are literally able to do things on a click of a button which made it hard to overcome laziness.
Previously, household chores, transportation, and other activities required varying degrees of labor. However, present human lives have become very complacent, not requiring him to physically move that much.
Although it sounds fantastic to be able to live in such an automated world this has posed a serious threat to mankind in the form of laziness. The increasing dependence on machinery needs to be restricted if not eradicated in order to bring back some action in our lives.
8. Exercise regularly
How to stop being lazy and depressed? Well, studies have found out that exercise can somewhat magically help in improving the performance of a person. It might look like a typical lecture but incorporating fitness sessions in your daily lives could serve as a milestone in overcoming indolence.
Initially, it may appear highly demanding but start with walking, swimming, and running and then slowly enhance your workouts.
9. Overcome depression
According to the American Psychiatric Association if you feel unmotivated for more than two weeks then you qualify as depressed. Depression, anxiety disorders, or other mental illnesses can also make you want to spend your entire life on the couch.
You might think that it will go away but that doesn’t really work that way. It is hence mandatory for us to seek help in this regard. A healthy brain leaves less room for laziness.
10. Take it easy, take a break!
Our lives may have been made simpler by introducing machines but problems and workloads do manage to seep in anyway. Everybody needs some kind of change to be productive again.
Holiday, adventure, essentially a break from work is sometimes all that you need to bring you back to your senses. Thus, it is perfectly fine to plan a vacation occasionally as an antidote to occasional laziness.
All in all, laziness stops you from reaching your potential level. You could be much more than just an average student or a sidelined employee, it is only up to you to decide whether you are willing to mend your ways and get off the couch to discover your true self. Research has proven that people have successfully overcome laziness by monitoring and correcting their daily activities.
Related: Power of a Positive Attitude on Workplace Productivity