How to Overcome Laziness: 14 Pro Tips

The habit of doing nothing all day, lying on the couch, and staying glued to the TV or your phone are symptoms of laziness. How can you overcome laziness and be more productive in life?

Laziness is often called other names, such as; sloth, incompetence, lethargy, idleness, and inactivity.

Although the causes of laziness are often hidden from us, their disastrous consequences are all-too-obvious. It could lead to a lack of enthusiasm for your work, motivation, and stagnation in life.

Laziness is a habit. It’s something we do so often that it becomes part of our routine. So, to overcome laziness, you must change your habits and routines.

How to Overcome Laziness

Learning how to fight laziness is useless since you can not win if you do not know what you are against.

Understand why you act lazy in the first place before developing the emotional regulation skills required to change if you want to learn how to quit being lazy.

1. Start Small

Lazy people often make excuses not to do anything because they think they’ll have to do everything at once.

But you don’t need to change everything at once — just one small thing at a time.

Maybe you can start by walking up the stairs instead of taking the elevator or making your coffee instead of buying it from Starbucks every morning.

Once you’ve broken the habit of doing nothing, it will be easier to keep going on other things!

2. Get Off Your Phone

If you’re feeling lazy, the best thing to do is to get off your phone. The whole point of social media is to connect people, but when it becomes an addiction and a distraction, it can make you feel more isolated.

Spend less time scrolling through Instagram and Facebook and more time having real conversations with real people.

3. Make a Plan for Your Day

The most productive people have a plan for the day. When they get up in the morning, they know exactly what to do.

You don’t have to write down every task on a piece of paper, but knowing where you want to be at the end of the day will give you a sense of purpose and motivation.

4. Get Outside Everyday

Our lives are so busy that sometimes we forget about nature. We spend so much time indoors that we become disconnected from our environment.

Get outside whenever possible and enjoy nature as much as possible — even if it’s just sitting in your backyard or walking around your neighborhood once every week or two!

5. Set Small Goals

The goal of overcoming laziness is to get yourself moving again. Instead of tackling a big project all at once, start with something small that will get your momentum going again.

If you have a big project, break it up into smaller tasks and set deadlines for each one to see progress on your overall goal.

Read Also: How to Be More Positive

6. Reward Yourself

When you complete a task or set a goal. Set rewards for completing small tasks and goals so that when you reach them, they will motivate you to continue with your work until you finish your big project.

7. Get Enough Sleep and Exercise Daily If Possible

Lack of sleep and exercise can contribute to feelings of being fatigued and unmotivated — two things that make it much easier for laziness to take over!

Try getting at least seven hours of sleep per night and exercising regularly during the week as much as possible (even if it’s just walking around the neighborhood).

8. Get Rid of Distractions

If you’re easily distracted by technology or other things, you need to eliminate those distractions to concentrate on the task.

Leave your phone in another room when you’re working on something important so that it doesn’t distract you from what’s important.

If you must use social media or email while working, schedule times in which you do so rather than letting yourself get distracted whenever it suits you.

9. Do Something Else When You’re Bored

Instead of sitting around feeling bored or restless when you have nothing to do, go out with friends or take up a new hobby.

Taking up a new hobby will give you something interesting to do with your time that doesn’t involve sitting around doing anything!

10. Eat Healthy Food and Avoid Junk Food

Junk food tends to be high in sugar and fat, which can cause you to feel tired and sluggish if you overeat.

Eating healthy foods will help you stay full longer and give you more energy throughout the day.

11. Try Meditation or Yoga for Relaxation

These activities can help you relax and stay focused on your goals. If you want to eliminate negative thoughts, try meditating for 30 minutes daily.

You can start with 5 minutes daily and increase it after 2 weeks to 30 minutes daily.

12. Change Your Environment

If you’re feeling lazy, try changing your environment by going outside or moving to a quieter room. The change in scenery may help you feel more motivated and energized.

13. Take Time Out for Yourself

Laziness is usually caused by stress, which causes us to feel overwhelmed and burnt out. To overcome this feeling, take time out for yourself every day, at least once or twice a week.

Go for a walk in the park or sit under a tree and read a good book — whatever relaxes you most.

14. Avoid Negative Thoughts

Avoid negative thoughts and find positive ones instead. If you’re thinking, “I’m so lazy” or “I hate myself,” then your subconscious mind will pick up on those thoughts, manifesting themselves as reality — so avoid them if you want to change your life!

Instead, think positively about yourself and what you want from life; visualize yourself achieving goals and being happy; write down your goals and read them regularly; talk positively about yourself and others.

Read Also: How to Be More Confident

Final Thoughts

Laziness is a problem many people face. Motivation can be hard, but you must get up and move.

We all have a lazy streak, which can be very difficult to eliminate. However, it’s not impossible to overcome laziness.