Why You’re Procrastinating (and How to Break the Cycle Today)
Procrastination isn’t laziness—it’s usually a sign of fear, perfectionism, overwhelm, or just plain mental overload.
In this episode, I break down the real reasons freelancers and service providers procrastinate and how to finally get back into action mode without shame, burnout, or hustle.
Whether you’re avoiding proposals, pushing off content creation, or just staring at your to-do list wondering where to start, this episode will help you identify what’s actually holding you back, and give you a four-step plan to break the cycle today.
Why Procrastination Happens (And What It’s Really About)
Procrastination isn’t about poor time management; it’s about emotional avoidance and decision fatigue. I share four common causes behind procrastination for freelancers and moms running service-based businesses:
- You’re avoiding a feeling: Fear of rejection, failure, judgment, or confrontation can keep you stuck.
- You don’t have clarity: Vague to-do lists keep you in spin mode—”Work on the funnel” isn’t a task.
- Perfectionism is creeping in: You delay starting until it’s “perfect,” which usually means never.
- You’re mentally overloaded: If you’re juggling client work, meal planning, school emails, and a toddler meltdown, your brain is maxed out—and that’s okay.
4 Tangible Ways to Break the Procrastination Cycle Today
Instead of just pushing harder, Brandi gives a simple, repeatable method to reset your focus and finally move forward:
- Do a 2-minute brain dump – Get everything swirling in your head onto paper.
- Circle one task that moves money – Prioritize income-generating action.
- Break it into a 10-minute step – You don’t need to finish. You just need to start.
- Set a timer and go – Short bursts of focus can lead to massive momentum.
Moms & The Mental Load: Why You Might Just Be Tapped Out
If you’re a mom juggling school pickups, client calls, and toddler snack negotiations, your procrastination may not be fear, it might just be fatigue. I break down how even 15 minutes of no-input rest (no podcasts, no screens, no multitasking) can restore your brain and bring your creativity back online.
Here’s A Glance Of The Episode:
00:00 Introduction & who this episode is for
01:00 Four root causes of procrastination
03:00 Avoidance behavior & task-based fear
06:00 The danger of vague to-do lists
08:00 Real-life example: “Refresh website” = project, not task
09:00 Perfectionism is costing you clients
11:30 The invisible mental load moms carry
13:00 Brandi’s personal shift to reduce decision fatigue
15:00 Step-by-step method to get out of procrastination
17:00 Final thoughts + free resource for ad managers
Key Takeaways:
- Name the fear: Avoidance starts with an emotion—call it out to cut its power.
- Get clear on tasks: Procrastination often hides in poorly defined to-dos.
- Progress over perfection: Perfect doesn’t pay the bills. Action does.
- Protect your energy: Moms especially need white space to create—rest is not optional.
- Use the 4-step reset: Brain dump → Pick a money task → 10-minute step → Timer → GO.
- and so much more.
Loved This Episode? Grab the Free Guide:
👉 Click here to download the Streamlined Ad Manager Guide Inside, you’ll get the exact systems Brandi uses to keep client work organized, creative flow high, and procrastination low—so you can finally run your freelance business like a pro.
Want More Like This? ⬇️
CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT STAYING FOCUSED WITH MY PARKING LOT METHOD
Additional Resources
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Meet Brandi
Brandi Mowles is the host of the Serve Scale Soar® podcast which is a podcast dedicated to helping service-based entrepreneurs scale their online business to five-figure months so they can soar into six-figure years. Brandi is a wife, mom and in less than one year, created a six-figure business. Now she is spilling all her secrets so you can too.
