5 Wise Ways to Fight Laziness

Aaron D'Anthony Brown Contributing Author
Updated Jun 13, 2023

Most people wouldn’t point to me as the epitome of laziness, and for that I would certainly agree. However, just like the next person, there are definitely some lazy tendencies I show from time to time. Procrastinating on taking out the trash, avoiding the dishes, and putting off my most difficult writing assignments. Most people aren’t all-around lazy, but everyone I know has lazy tendencies in one way or another.

You can often discern lazy behavior based on someone’s mindset - they recognize the importance of a task, but lack the willpower to do anything. Laziness affects our jobs, our relationships, and our health. Laziness even affects our relationship with God.

Though this isn’t often stated on Sunday, laziness is a sin. A sin is knowing what’s right and instead doing the thing that separates us from God (James 4:17). Likewise, when we’re lazy, we know what we ought to do, but we choose not to do that. Oftentimes, we opt to do nothing.

The dishes need washing, an assignment needs to be completed, and that tough conversation needs to be had, but we won’t budge. We don’t want to budge.

Do you struggle with laziness? Has your productivity at work plummeted as a result? Have certain relationships fallen by the wayside?

If so, know that there is hope for change. First, we recognize the problem, then we take the steps toward becoming the man or woman we want to be. Here are five wise ways you and I can fight laziness today.

1. Swallow the Frog

One of the hardest, yet most important things to do when fighting against laziness is to follow this rule - swallow the frog. Or in other words, do the hard things first. If you’re like me, tackling the easy tasks makes sense because once those are done, there is less work to do. However, by beginning with the hardest tasks first, once that’s done, everything else is smooth sailing.

Tough assignments can leave us feeling a sense of dread and anxiety. When they’re done, especially when we complete them first, that anxiety and dread gives way to fulfillment. If you swallow the frog, you’ll be less likely to procrastinate in the end.

2. Stay Accountable

Our lazy bones are the result of our own inaction. In order to undo those destructive old habits, we have to form newer healthier ones. Yet, talking about new habits is not the same as performing and sticking to them. We may start motivated by the idea of a better version of ourselves, but motivation is not a constant in life. Most of us can’t just rely on ourselves if we want lasting change. We need support, and we can find such help in one another.

Talk to someone you trust and let them know about your goals to beat laziness and be more productive. Give them specific details so that they know exactly how to check in with you about progress.

3. Pray for Motivation

Aside from the support we find in other people, there’s plenty of support to find in God too. While we work for change, we can pray for change. Ask God to supply you with the right know-how to overcome laziness. Seek Him for motivation when you're lacking, and consult Him as you try to figure out who’s best suited to keep you accountable. No one loves you as much as God. Therefore, if you want change, you will want to include God in your plans.

4. Set a Goal

If you want to make laziness an issue of the past, then you’ll need to set goals. You can start with one and add more later, but always have an idea of where you want to go. A specific idea. For example, if you slack on reading the Bible every day, figuring out a way to be more consistent. Perhaps, you decide to read first thing in the morning, before any of your other commitments begin. You read for just five minutes and make this into a habit. Once this becomes your new normal, you set a new goal. Reading for ten minutes, then fifteen, and so on. With goals in mind, we know what we want to achieve and have an idea of how to get there.

5. Know Your Why

Knowing your why means being able to answer the question, why are you trying to change? Without having a why, we can’t stay motivated. And if our why is unrighteous, then our efforts are doomed to fail. Ultimately, we want to overcome the sin of laziness to become a better version of ourselves, for God, and for our loved ones. We want to love ourselves better too!

Conclusion

“The slacker craves, yet has nothing, but the diligent is fully satisfied.” (Proverbs 13:4, CSB)
“Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as something done for the Lord and not for people.” (Colossians 3:23)

Like any other sin, we find change after we take our struggle to God. Yet, like other sins, that process of taking our laziness to God is something we will have to do time and time again. Change doesn’t happen overnight. Thankfully, with practice, we will get better. Our sin will grow weaker, and we will become better versions of ourselves. Work productivity will increase, relationships will benefit, and our waistlines will shrink. Most importantly, we will find that our relationship with God changes.

When we’re lazy, our perspective of life focuses on ourselves. Our wants, our needs. When God becomes the focus, laziness decreases because we stop thinking so much about self. Serving God and others becomes the priority. We take care of responsibilities as they arise because we don’t want to cause anyone stress for our inaction.

Even if you don’t think of laziness as one of your major struggle, there’s certainly at least one way you can be more productive in life, whether at home or on the job.

Overcoming laziness, like any sin, takes time, effort, and consideration. Take your time figuring out ways to grow, and be patient with yourself through the process.

Aaron D'Anthony Brown is a freelance writer, hip-hop dance teacher, and visual artist, living in Virginia. He currently contributes to Salem Web Network’s Crosswalk platform and supports various clients through the freelancing website Upwork. He's an outside-the-box thinker with a penchant for challenging the status quo.