Graphic Leadership: Laziness

By Dave Arch on March 31, 2013

Politically correct or not the leader understands that laziness occurs in more places than just the dictionary.

The leader learns to spot it in others and catches it quickly when s/he senses it making inroads into his/her own life. Most often laziness is seen in the act of procrastination. With the innate desire to instant gratification and our ability to scare ourselves regarding the difficulty of tasks (search in this blog also the terms Anxiety, Fear, and Perfectionism for other insights on mastering the debilitating habit of procrastination); it is not hard to recognize how putting off what we perceive to be difficult tasks or tasks that do not deliver instant gratification can be tempting.

Dr. Nando Pelusi in the July 1, 2007 edition of Psychology Today gave the following behavioral strategies to also aid you in helping to ensure that laziness in all its forms doesn’t sidetrack your growth towards greater leadership.

Instant reward is the default setting of the brain, but we like ourselves better when we tackle unpleasant tasks.

Start Small. Ask yourself, “Why is it too hard to do this for just 15 minutes?” It isn’t, and you’ll find that you quickly enjoy some tasks (somewhat).
Challenge Yourself. Dispute the idea that you can’t do it. Often, we learn by trial and error, and if you take a long-range view, you’ll find that you can do something difficult.
Keep Tabs. Write out your goals daily. We’re more likely to stick to our plans if we monitor our progress toward a goal.
Commit to Others. Make a public commitment to complete a task. The extrinsic motivation provided by others will make you more conscientious about getting it done.
Accept Incremental Progress. Dispute the idea that you need comfort and immediate reward. Getting rid of these ideas can refocus you on your long-term goal.
Reward Yourself. Relaxation differs from laziness in that it is a reward for a completed task. Let yourself relax after a period of sustained effort.