Fear is a common trigger for procrastination. Fear can arise around new tasks, difficult tasks, risky tasks, or tasks involving people or situations that have caused uncomfortable feelings or negative outcomes in the past.

A lot of scary tasks are only scary before they are done. Once tasks are complete, they usually seem much less intimidating. This is because uncertainty often drives fear. Once the task is complete and the uncertainty is resolved, we can see that the required steps weren’t as difficult as we had imagined. Unfortunately, procrastinators can spend more time distracting themselves from uncertainty than it would take to dispel it with action. Thankfully, the following process can help to relieve uncertainty around a task:

• Write down a list of the major steps in the task.
• Read through the list and briefly imagine undertaking each step.
• Some steps will not elicit any uncomfortable emotion, but it is likely that some will.
• When a step elicits an uncomfortable emotion, write down why you think that step is causing the emotion. Maybe you’ve never done it before. Maybe you are concerned about a reaction from someone else, or maybe you are worried the outcome will be negative. There are many possible reasons and there may be more than one.
  • Try to be as specific as possible. Where the reason is vague or undefined, for example, ‘it might go wrong’, examine the concern until you can identify precisely how it might go wrong. This can be challenging but is necessary to help deal with the underlying feeling.
• Now write down the likelihood of each of your concerns occurring as a percentage. Try to be realistic and avoid exaggerating.
• If the chance of the negative outcome occurring seems significant, take the following steps:
  • Write down the steps you can take to prevent that negative outcome from occurring.
  • Write down the steps you can take to repair or improve your position if the negative outcome does occur.
• Once you have processed each of your concerns, any general fears about the task should now be clear and manageable. If this eases your fear, then begin the task. If these steps identify risks you are not prepared to take, consider changing the task or taking precautions

Tools that can help you start or get through a fear-inducing task include the following:

• Make starting easy.
• Break it down into tiny tasks.
• Write it out.
• Meditate.
• Get perspective.
• Talk to someone about it. An outside perspective often helps to dispel fear and provide encouragement.