Goodbye to procrastination: the two steps to stop putting things off forever
A new study from the University of California says you can break the habit of procrastinating in just two minutes using a simple technique.
Procrastination has become a universal problem, affecting everyone from students to office workers. Over time, constantly delaying tasks can create a pileup of unfinished obligations that becomes harder and harder to manage.
To stop that cycle, researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) ran a scientific study that outlines a two-step strategy designed to put an end to procrastination.What does the study consist of?
What did the procrastination study propose?
The researchers present a short method that helps you start any task you’ve been avoiding in under two minutes. The idea is to take small, immediate steps that make getting started far easier. The technique doesn’t require major changes to your routine — just a gentle push to tackle what you’ve been putting off.
The first step is to define the task clearly by identifying exactly what you want to accomplish. Then, acknowledge the emotions that task stirs up — boredom, anxiety, fear, frustration. Once you’ve identified those feelings, the study suggests saying them out loud to increase your awareness of what’s holding you back.
The second step is to break the task into quick, manageable pieces. Each mini-task should have a specific time limit and be tracked. The study also recommends giving yourself a small, immediate reward after completing each one: listening to a song, grabbing a coffee, or doing something you enjoy.
How the research was conducted
The study included 1,035 adults in the United States and the United Kingdom, most of them women with an average age of 39. Participants were randomly assigned to three groups: one that followed the two-step method, and two control groups.
Following the researchers’ instructions, participants identified the emotions the task triggered — a process psychologists call affect labeling. To measure the intervention’s impact, the researchers evaluated changes in mood, motivation, and stress levels as participants worked through the task.
The study found that breaking a task into smaller pieces and pairing each step with a simple reward boosted motivation and made it easier to take action. This short, structured approach helps people start tasks they’ve long avoided quickly and effectively — without needing lengthy planning or elaborate systems.
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