Face the Fear—Peter Bregman’s Advice for Procrastinators
February 13, 2012 4 Comments
“Failure in a long-term project isn’t just a work issue; it’s an identity issue. Is it any wonder that we procrastinate?” This simple insight lies at the heart of Peter Bregman’s excellent counsel for those who have trouble getting started on BIG PROJECTS. You know who you are:
- first-time book authors
- second-, third-, and fourth-time book authors
- PhD candidates confronted with writing a dissertation
- public speakers
- athletes
- those who aspire to developing a new hobby
- parents
- generals of armies
- book keepers
- bloggers
Yep. Pretty much anyone who ever wanted to do something of value.
Bregman recognizes that the salami technique is useful, but he notes that it doesn’t deal directly with our “issues” as procrastinators on large undertakings. (The salami technique consists in slicing the biggies into smaller, more digestible sizes, then acting on each, one at a time, gradually making forward progress until the end is in sight.)
No need to repeat what Bregman says. Just visit his post for the Harvard Business Review here.
About Doug Geivett
Glad to hear it, Alex!
I read the article your linked. Excellent advice and quite timely for me! I’m about to start writing my prospectus!
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Hi Doug,
You forgot to add entrepreneurs to the above list. Entrepreneurship’s first enemy is procrastination.