Do you ever find you have todo items on your task lists that just seem to linger. No matter how long they stay on the list and how motivated you are to work, you just can’t seem to get around to them?
It may be that they are just to inconspicuous. When we act, it is to receive a reinforcer. This reinforcer can come in all kinds of different formats from avoiding punishment, to receiving something we want, to feeling good about our selfs (this last one is in layman terms). At work, we most likely complete tasks to avoid punishment (keep our jobs). However, when given the freedom to work on different tasks, prioritized how we deem fit, we usually prioritize based off which will give us the most likely chance to receive praise from our superiors, peers, clients or customers.
So when a task lingers, ask yourself, “am I avoiding this task because no one will notice if it gets done?”
If the answer is yes, try and look at the task differently. What will it solve? Who will it help? Who is going to benefit from the completion of the task? In doing so, hopefully you can find ways to tweak it to make it more conspicuous. Maybe increasing the scope of the task will help more people making it more valuable. Not only will this get the task done, but it will allow you to exceed expectations and therefore receive the praise you so richly desire.
Something to remember though: Positive praise will only come from work that is praise worthy. If your task is an expectation of your job, the level of praise you receive from it will be equivalent – meaning not very high. It’s when you go above and beyond these expectations that you will receive positive praise.