Price of Procrastination

Do you want to have more money in your savings and investment accounts each month? Then it’s time to stop procrastinating because it may be costing you more than realize.

Learn how procrastinating can get you in financial trouble, stop procrastination using the “STING” method, and learn 5 ways to fix your finances in one hour.

What’s So Bad About Procrastination?

Putting off things that need to get done may lead to compounding penalty fees, growing interest, making unnecessary purchases or just paying more for the things you need.

In a worst-case scenario, procrastination can even lead to bankruptcy. Credit counselors report that some people are waiting so long to call them that by the time they reach out for assistance, their debt levels are too high to work out an affordable repayment plan.

Elizabeth Warren, a leading bankruptcy researcher, echoes this in her book, The Two-Income Trap: 

The greatest danger for a family in financial distress is not bill collectors, although they can be the most annoying. The greatest danger is false optimism. We heard it over and over again in our interviews [from their study of bankruptcy]: ‘We thought Mark would be back at work right away… We didn’t think Grandpa could go on like this much longer.’ These families knew they had been hit by a disaster but they didn’t respond fast enough because they thought it would pass quickly.”

False optimism and procrastination often go hand in hand. You put off doing what should be done today, thinking that tomorrow the problem will somehow disappear.

Stop Procrastination with the “STING” Method

If you know that procrastination is a challenge for you, try this approach developed by Rita Emmett, author of The Procrastinator’s Handbook. It’s called STING and these are the basic steps:

1. Select just one task you’ve been putting off.
2. Time yourself. Give the task one full hour, using a kitchen timer.
3. Ignore everything else. Focus on doing just this one task.
4. No breaks allowed while the timer is ticking.
5. Give yourself a reward when the job is done.

You can use STING to tackle all kinds of tasks, from paying your bills to filling out tax forms. Here are some of the more common ways procrastination can hurt your finances, and solutions for tackling those problems in one hour or less.

5 Ways to Fix Your Finances in One Hour

Problem 1: Your credit card balances are not budging, but you’re afraid if you ask for help, you will “ruin your credit” or have to cut up your credit cards.

The Solution: Don’t worry about things that haven’t happened yet. Just take the first step. Go online or make one phone call to the Union Plus Credit Counseling Service for a free and confidential session. In less than an hour you’ll have options for putting your debt behind you. Call 877-833-1745, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Problem 2: You don’t plan menus so you end up eating out, or spending more money at the grocery store.

The Solution: Most families have about ten meals they eat over and over again. Make a list of your top ten and put it in your purse or wallet. Then, stock up on the ingredients for those staple dishes when they are on sale. When you do cook one of these meals, make a double batch and freeze the second one. You’ll find that you’ll be less likely to stop off for a quick but costly meal out knowing that you have something easy and delicious waiting at home.

Problem 3: You wait until the last minute to pay bills, and find yourself paying late fees, express payment fees and additional interest.

The Solution: Devote an hour to getting organized. For some people it will mean buying a plastic filing bin with hanging folders for each account. For others, an online bill payment site is the easiest way to get the job done. Free services such as Mint.com, Quicken Online or Wesabe allow you to view all your online accounts on one screen, schedule notifications of due dates and more.

If you discover the real problem is that you don’t have enough money to cover your bills, take advantage of the free budgeting session available to union members through the Union Plus Credit Counseling Service. Again, it’s free, confidential and available 24/7. Go online or call 877-833-1745.

Problem 4: You don’t balance your checkbook and wind up bouncing a check. You pay an overdraft fee of $30 or more.

The Solution: Sign up for an overdraft line of credit on your checking account to avoid costly overdraft fees. Then, set up online banking so you can review your accounts at least once a week to keep track of how much money is available in your account. At the same time, find out whether you can set up an email or cell phone alert that will notify you if your balance falls below a certain threshold, say $200.

Problem 5: You wait until the last minute to file your taxes and worry you’ve missed valuable deductions, or you end up paying penalties for filing late.

The Solution: Break this task up into small pieces. Commit to just one hour of gathering all the information and forms you need. Remember to reward yourself. Then later you can commit to working one hour at a time until the task is done. For more help and to save 15% on filing your taxes, learn about the Union Plus TurboTax Discount.

For more information on how to deal with debt, visit the Union Plus Debt Help Web site.