#22 How do you overcome procrastination with your business finances?

About This Episode

Today we’re tackling something that we all struggle with, procrastination. Sometimes we’re off to the races knocking things off of our list and other times there’s that ONE THING that we put off again and again. In this episode, we’re discussing some ways to kill the procrastination bug, as well as how to make a list of tasks that need to be done on a regular basis so you’re not always racing to catch up.

Learn about how to find and put together a financial task list to help keep your business finances in order!

What we’re talking about

• Why We Procrastinate
• Ways We Can Break the Procrastination Habit
• How to Make a Personalized Financial Task List

Why We Procrastinate

First off- there’s nothing shameful about procrastination. I also procrastinate in my business. Maybe not on the financial stuff, but on other tasks. We hate to do things we feel are hard, we aren’t good at, or we feel lost doing. And often the feelings those tasks bring up reinforce our negative or limiting beliefs. It’s no wonder we don’t want to do them!

What comes to mind when you think about doing the financials for your business? Does it bring a sense of dread or panic? Is it because you’d rather be elbow deep in the “fun” part of your business? Are you bewildered by the different requirements for your business? Or is it another reason altogether?

Ways We Can Break the Procrastination Habit

Once we can pinpoint your “why,” we can start experimenting with how to break the procrastination habit. And that’s the first step to overcoming procrastination: experimentation.

Anytime that you’re trying to figure out why you’re procrastinating (and what to do about it), there’s some degree of experimentation that has to happen in terms of your habits, patterns and what actions help you and what doesn’t make a difference at all.

Here are some ways to get overcome procrastination.

Understanding why you are procrastinating

This boils down to understanding the root cause of your procrastination. It could be fear, discomfort, overwhelm, boredom, knowledge gaps, lacking the skills, anxiety, and so much more!

Identify what will counteract the cause of your procrastination: After you understand that cause you can start to address and find the things that are going to counteract that cause. You’re looking for balance.

For example, if doing your bookkeeping is SUPER boring to you, what would make it more fun? Could it be watching a guilty-pleasure show while you do your bookkeeping? We’re not looking for you to suddenly become like the biggest champion of doing your bookkeeping every week, but we just want you to be able to tolerate doing it.

For procrastination that’s rooted in money shame and money wounds, it’s less about trying to fix those things right away, and more about engaging and reflecting on what’s coming up and what you can do to soothe your self. It’s not realistic to think you’re going to be able to suddenly reverse years of money wounds by watching The Bachelor while you do your bookkeeping.

So, instead of having a “fix it” attitude when the procrastination comes up, approach it from a holistic healing place. What’s the medicine you can put on the wound so you can move forward with your bookkeeping? What’s the deeper work that needs to happen, over time, to heal the money wound? What can you do right now to take care of your self? What needs to wait?

Start small

People often fall very very behind on their finances and then become overwhelmed by all the work they have to do. Instead of having high lofty expectations of yourself, start small. Set your timer for 30 minutes and just do the icky work for 30 minutes and that’s it. Give yourself permission to stop and celebrate what you accomplished.

Embody the impact

Get clear on what it’s important that you do your bookkeeping or deal with the money stuff in your business. How does this work help your business grow? How does it improve your personal life? How would it feel to have the work done and know your numbers?

Once you see the impact, embody that feeling. Get into the dream of this new lifestyle. Let yourself feel all the good feels.

External accountability

For some people, especially with money, external accountability is the only way that they’re going to get something done. External accountability is someone or something holding you accountable that isn’t you. It could be a business buddy, mastermind group, or business coach.

How to Make a Personalized Financial Task List

If dealing with the money stuff in your business overwhelms you because you don’t know where to start, a financial task list is your new BFF.

A financial task list gives you a step by step process to follow every time you take care of your business finances. That doesn’t mean that every time you work on your business finances, you do everything on that list. You may skip over a few things, but the idea is that you have a structure and a framework to follow.

To make a financial task list, for two to three weeks write down everything that you do for your business finances. Anytime you do anything for your finances to write it down. Just keep a piece of paper next to your computer and write down all the mundane stuff that you do.

Then, order and sort the list. You’ll find that once you see all the tasks together some tasks make sense to do together. This helps you find your natural rhythms and where you can be more efficient about your financial work.

If you need help getting started on your financial task list, my Biz Finance Survival kit has two bookkeeping checklists to get you started.