Procrastination doesn’t mean you’re lazy; it means your energy is stuck.

In this episode, I share why getting stuck feels so frustrating (especially when you compare yourself to other counsellors who seem to be doing it all), and how you can see it in a completely different way.

You’ll discover:

• Why procrastination isn’t a sign of failure or laziness (phew!)
• The real reasons you put off tasks in your private practice
• Simple, doable steps to release that stuck energy and get moving again

If you’ve ever found yourself tidying your desk, scrolling social media, or avoiding that important task, this episode will help you move forward with more ease and confidence.

Links

Come and join us inside The Grow Your Private Practice membership. A safe, supportive space where you’ll find practical tools, step-by-step guidance, and a community that gets it.

And if you’d like to explore more free and paid resources to help you along the way, you can start right here: janetravis.co.uk/start-here

You know that maddening place where you really want to get something done, but then somehow you just don't, you know that your desk gets tidied, your emails get checked, you know, you have a quick look on Instagram, so you're kind of busy, but not doing the thing that actually matters. And as more time slips by, that task only feels bigger and scarier and harder to face, harder to just get started with.

And it's not just the task that weighs on you, it's the feelings that go with it. You know, you start to think that you are failing or that somehow you are not cut out for this. And you start to compare yourself to everybody else who seems to be just getting on just fine.

And then you wonder why it has to feel so hard to you. It's frustrating, it's confidence sapping. And it can leave you wondering what's wrong with you, when in reality, nothing is wrong at all.

So I'm Jane Travis and this is the Grow Your Private Practice Show, the place for counsellors who sometimes feel a little bit torn in all the directions when it comes to marketing and just want to steadier, simpler way to share what they know and help more of the right clients to find them.

So hello, hello, hello, and welcome back and if this is your first visit, you are very welcome. So without further ado, let's get started. Now, if you haven't already guessed, yes, I'm talking about procrastination, but rather than treating it as laziness or a lack of willpower. What I'd like to do is look at it in a slightly different way, because for me it's not that I don't want to do those things or those important things.

I usually know exactly what I'm, what I need to do, why they matter, but you know, things like when I wanted to update my homepage with something that's gonna really help people to see what I do and understand what I'm offering. And I can see the value of it and I know what I want to add, but if there's one small part of that job that I don't quite know how to do, like maybe a little bit of tech, like adding a button or something like that, it can really stop me in my tracks and the whole task gets pushed aside. And then I keep seeing it on my to-do list and just like avoiding it.

And I don't avoid the things that I love doing. So I love writing blog posts. I love recording this podcast. Those are my happy places. But if I've left it too late to do it, and therefore I'm feeling the pressure to either write or record this well, that's when I freeze. That's when I start to feel backed into a corner, and that makes me stop rather than start.

So the thing is, it's not laziness. It's more of an unused energy. So instead of seeing this stuckness as proof that you are lazy, what about if you think of it as unused energy? You know the energy's there bubbling away. It's just stuck in some form of avoidance. And just like our clients sometimes avoid the things that feel scary or uncomfortable or overwhelming. We do the same in our businesses.

You know, the blog might sit there unwritten, the website update waits and the to-do list just gathers dust, not because we don't care about it, but because our energy just can't find its outlet. Now none of the ideas that I'm gonna share with you today are gonna be brand new.

You've probably heard them all before, probably from me as well. And you know, the chances are that you already know them. But that's the funny thing about getting stuck. It's rarely about not knowing what we need to do. It's about finding a way to actually let yourself do it. So rather than treating these as clever tricks or hacks, just think of them more as a gentle nudge. You know, tiny permissions, ways to loosen the grip and let some of that energy start moving again. So I would recommend that, you know, notice what's happening for yourself without any judgment. So say to yourself, well that's interesting.

I know I want to do this and I know why I need to do this, but I'm really noticing that there's a resistance because it's curiosity that opens doors. Criticism just slams them shut. So maybe just get really curious and ask, why am I avoiding this? You know, is it because of fear? Is it because I'm putting myself under some pressure?

Is it because I just feel confused and I'm not absolutely sure what I need to do? Because when you name it, you can work with it. And then think about using the tools that you already know. So if you are a counsellor, even if you should know better, and I'm using little, you know, speech marks around that, you need to remember that you are a human first.

You know, it's something I'm talking about all the time. Human first, counsellor second, and that little voice. That says, you already know this. Why can't you just do it? Well, look, that's not really gonna help you very much at all. You really don't need somebody criticizing you because once you soften that inner resistance, here are a few small scrappy ways to get moving again. So you could do just one tiny thing. You know, it might be just to open the file. It might be just to choose a picture. It might be to just choose a title or just some one small thing, because small is really powerful.

Something else that I talk about a lot of times is great for helping you with this. So get your phone out, set a timer for 10 minutes, commit to working on it just for 10 minutes, because often that's all it takes to just get something going, you know, get that momentum rolling. Let go of perfect. You know, if you've got to draft something, just get it drafted without. Really getting stuck into typing and grammar. Just write it and then go back and edit it and, you know, post it with a typo in it. Who cares? Nobody really cares. Because scrappy action is gonna beat polished avoidance. And then maybe pick the easiest bit. So start with the smallest step and let the pressure just ease off, you know, like opening a bottle of fizzy pop and let that fizz dissipate kind of slowly. Because it's not about being clever or discovering a magic trick.

It's about noticing what's really happening and giving yourself permission to just take one small step and letting that small step release the pressure that you've put yourself under. And let's be honest, even when you love what you do, there are gonna be days when you just can't be bothered. I love what I do, but I still have those days, you know?

And on those days, forcing myself to sit at my desk and tackle some of the. You know, big, more complex stuff that I need to do is not gonna help. It's just gonna leave me feeling frustrated, and then my inner critic is gonna start kicking me up the backside, and I don't want that. Instead, what I tend to do is I'll go on the sofa, I'll have my feet up on the coffee table, I'll have my laptop balanced on my lap.

And I'll have bargain, bargain hunt playing in the background. And whilst I'm not gonna be doing my most inspired work and still ticking off some of those simpler jobs that I haven't found time to do, or things that keep things moving. And that's kind of the point, because progress doesn't always have to look like full focus and perfect conditions. Sometimes it just looks like making it a little bit easier on yourself. How often do we do that? Sometimes we can be so hard on ourselves. Now, another trick that I use when I'm stuck is to actually borrow energy from somebody else.

So if I'm staring at my to-do list and nothing's happening, I'm just feeling really uninspired, can't think of a thing to do, instead of like going down that kicking myself thing. What I actually do is I take a few minutes to look around at other people. So I might look at some training that I've done or I might read a blog post, or I might go and have a look on YouTube.

Or sometimes I'll scroll through an Instagram, social media expert that I follow and I see what they've been sharing. And often just a few minutes of this is enough because their energy will spark something in me and suddenly I'm ready to start. It's given me that momentum. Look, it's not about copying them.

I don't copy people, but I let their ideas kind of wake up my ideas. I see what they're doing in their business, and I think, how can I work that around for me? That's a great idea, but how can I make that work for, you know, the people who listen to me? You know, you basically. So a little reminder that I don't need to do everything perfectly.

I just need to get moving and just checking out what other people are doing and getting some ideas is a great way of doing that. Now, I remember I once put off updating a small part of my website, literally for weeks. I mean, weeks. And it wasn't even a big job, it was just adding a button. But I built it up so much in my head that it actually felt impossible. And when I finally sat down to do it, it took about 10 minutes. I mean 10 minutes, and that's the trick that stuckness plays on us. It makes the task feel far bigger and scarier and far, far harder than it really is. It whispers to us that we are not ready or that we should know better, or that we'll mess it up, or that everybody knows this and everybody's doing better than us. But the reality is, this is just a part of being human.

You know that. You already know that, and everybody does this. Counsellors included, but the difference is you get to choose how you respond. You can notice it, you can name it, and then you can release just enough energy to take that first step. And every time you do, you're not just getting the task done, you are proving to yourself that you can, you know that you are capable and that you are learning, and that you are building a practice in the real world with all of its mess and imperfection. So the next time you feel yourself hesitating, don't see it as a failure. See it as a sign that you care, and then take one small action to let that energy start to move and trust that the rest will follow. So look, that's it for today, and if you've been listening while tidying your desk or checking your emails, or I don't know, reorganizing paperclips, consider this the nudge that you need to stop and just do one small thing that actually matters.

Because once you do. That momentum will start. And look, if you'd like some more of these little nudges, you know, plus the tools and the support to finally get your practice moving in the way that you want it to, why not come and join me in the Grow Your Private Practice membership? You'll find all the details at growyourprivatepractice.co.uk.

And remember, no paperclip shuffle ever brought in a client action is the antidote to fear. So that's it for me this week. Have an absolutely fantastic week and I look forward to speaking to you again soon. You take care. Bye-bye.