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How to stop procrastinating: writer AJ Jacobs' surprising approach [1]

['Mark Frauenfelder']

Date: 2025-09-09  

Writer AJ Jacobs has come up with a counterintuitive approach to beating procrastination: embracing the discomfort. In the latest edition of his Experimental Living newsletter, AJ describes his mindfulness technique for tackling dreaded tasks:

I force myself to lean into it. I go all mindful and semi-Buddhist on the discomfort, and say to myself, "Hmmm. What an interesting feeling I experience whenever I think about doing Annoying Task X. I'm curious how the sensation will change when I actually start doing Annoying Task X." And then I force myself to actually begin Step 1 of Annoying Task X, and I pay attention to that initial wave of extreme discomfort ("Wow, isn't that a fascinating sensation!" I say to myself). And then I keep working on Step 1 and observe how my brain's discomfort recedes, often quite quickly. Then I watch as my brain starts to experience pleasurable feelings of productivity and relief as I near Step 2.

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