How to Beat Procrastination during your Job Hunt

You're convinced video pitches are much better than sending a resume.

Something deep down sparked for you.

You thought, “yes, this is way better! This is what I need to win!”

So you got started.

Then you realized: a video pitch takes work.

We know it! We know we’re asking you to put it in the extra mile.

And you know it too!

But maybe you watch the days go by and a voice deep down says, “man, I need to build video pitches and find companies I love. I need to do deep dives (research) so I can blow them away. But I keep putting it off!”

But why are you doing that? It’s okay, it’s for good reason. 🙂

It’s because another voice is saying, “Hey, I want to relax!” Or, “Hey, I want to be comfortable!” Or, “Hey, I’ve got other things to do also!”

Relaxation, comfort, and other life tasks are all legitimate.

So don’t beat yourself up!

You can then recognize that capital-R “Resistance” that blocks you from doing the hard work – as Steven Pressfield identifies in The War of Art. This Resistance is normal for anyone taking charge of the creative process.

It’s normal to procrastinate on creating a video pitch.

But you can become an anti-procrastinator.

I’ll show you in 2 tips. If you apply these 2 tips, you’ll learn how to beat procrastination and sky-rocket into career orbit. 🚀

1) Recognize the Resistance as a good thing

Here’s the best quote from Pressfield’s book:

"Resistance is directly proportional to love. If you’re feeling massive Resistance, the good news is, it means there’s tremendous love there too. If you didn’t love the project that is terrifying you, you wouldn’t feel anything. The opposite of love isn’t hate; it’s indifference."
–Steven Pressfield, The War of Art

So notice that icky feeling of hesitation about starting a project or task. Then go towards it.

Go slay that dragon. The obstacle is the way.

And the more you do this, the more you’ll get excited about that icky feeling. You’ll see that the highest Resistance projects have the highest value, too.

And for every “dragon you slay,” you’ll gain confidence and momentum in your Crash hunt.

2) Define the Next Physical Action Step

The second tool is to define the Next Physical Action Step of a project.

This will build momentum. And this will puncture the membrane of Resistance.

It could be:
“Look up website of Company XYZ.”
“Draft bullet points for pitch video ”
“Look up Career Hackers for link to How to Find the Hiring Manager.”
“Look up tech tools needed for Customer Success roles”

Maybe these sound obvious or mundane. But often, we don’t move forward because there is some super-small hang-up. There’s a lack of clarity.

So the point is: get specific about how to kill the friction that’s stopping you from starting.

How to Beat Procrastination

So to recap:

1) Notice the icky feeling of procrastination

2) Specify the Next Step

Now go get after it!