Part I. Understanding procrastination and finding solutions to overcome it (1)
What is Procrastination and how does it comes about
What procrastination is and is not
Procrastination is the destructive habit of delaying action on what needs to bedone. It keeps us away from achieving our goals and dreams.
However destructive it may be, it is nevertheless a behaviour that responds to our human need to avoid pain and our desire to gain pleasure. The problem is that the interpretation of and stress on the objects of pain and pleasure are misplaced.
I believe that it’s wrong to label procrastination as laziness. Procrastination is not laziness or a weakness in willpower or self-discipline. For me, the two are quite different from each other. “Being lazy is not wanting to do anything that requires effort or exertion of energy, let alone doing something that you have to do but might not want to. In contrast, procrastination is usually concerned with actions the person wants to take, or with tasks and projects she herself has created and wishes to complete.
“The inaction in laziness is voluntary, whereas the inaction in procrastination is almost involuntary; it’s a by-product of other causes. With laziness, there’s a marked unwillingness to do the task, with no intention of ever doing it if that can be arranged. In the procrastinator’s case, however, the action is inhibited by emotional considerations, not by an unwillingness to do the task” (Getting to Action).
Types of Procrastination
Procrastination can be either a reaction to demands placed on a person by others or an internal struggle created by the person herself. For instance, a procrastinator of the first type may procrastinate on a task because he has no interest for it but feels obliged to do it because of some agreement or commitment.
Sometimes, even after having started the project, a procrastinator would prolong its completion for no valid reason other than not enjoying it. Therefore, he would work very slowly and repeatedly miss deadlines. This is the case when students procrastinate on writing term papers or employees writing a report for the next meeting at work.
A procrastinator of the second type would put off doing something that she herself has decided to do, a goal she herself has planned to accomplish, but she cannot make herself take the first step to do it because of some psychological reason. This could be fear of failure, fear of success, perfectionism, lack of self-confidence, a limiting belief, or some other emotional reason.
Such a procrastinator would put off finishing the task she has started because of her fear that the result may not be up to her own standards or those of the experts in the field. This is the fear of finding out that one is not as good at that particular task as they thought they were.
People with high standards and high self-expectations often get into the habit of procrastination, for they dread learning the worse about themselves. They would much rather not finish something and not reach their goal than finish it and face their ineptitude.
In this first series of posts, I will focus on the second type of procrastination, the starting of a project, such as writing/finishing your book, or starting a business, etc. But before we analyze it deeper, let’s see what triggers procrastination.
Triggers of procrastination
Procrastination is triggered by several factors, eighteen of which I have captured here. These factors fall under two types of triggers:
- Externally directed—Reaction to outside pressure or expectations
- Internally directed—Internal struggle because of emotional issues
A few of the triggers fall under the external type, while the majority fall under the internal one. After a short description of each trigger, I’ll suggest a different viewpoint or some initial steps as ways of thwarting it or solving the problem. In the following posts, however, I’ll delve deeper into the problem of procrastination and suggest a new outlook and a new process of overcoming it.
Externally directed triggers
1. Unwillingness to do it – Disinterest in the task
- Reaction: I simply don’t want to do this. Pure and simple.
- Reason: Not wanting to do something that is required according to some perceived necessity. These procrastinators delay action simply because they did not have any interest in it from the start, but were either told to do the task or they themselves thought they should be doing it for some reason other than their true desire. Because the task has no real value for them, however, they are unwilling to devote the necessary time to that single task and sacrifice other activities. They are easily distracted by other, more interesting, things and keep pushing the required task further and further into the future.
- Solution: Decide not to do it and take that out of your to-do list.
2. Boring, not fun – Preference for challenging or enjoyable activity
Reaction: This is so boring. It’s not a stimulating or exciting stuff. Not challenging at all. And it’s no fun too. I don’t want to do something I don’t enjoy.
Reason: Usually, people with high levels of intelligence are inspired by challenging tasks instead of mundane ones. Working on things that need creative solutions are more interesting and enjoyable to them than tasks that are commonplace. Not being required to use their imagination and competence for those “boring” tasks, these smart people procrastinate because they perceive those tasks to be beneath them.
Solution: If possible, delegate the task to someone else who’s willing and able to do it. If not, and if the task is an important one, admit that it must be taken care of and that the sooner you do that the sooner you’ll get rid of it. Postponing won’t make it disappear and you’ll have it hanging over your head for as long as you turn away from it. And if you’re a creative person, find creative ways of completing the task to make it more interesting for you.
3. Complaint – Resentment for being used, or for carrying all the burden
- Reaction: Why me? Why do I have to do this? Why doesn’t somebody else do it?
- Reason: When someone finds herself doing most of the work most of the time, she’ll eventually grow resentful and feel like being used. She’ll subconsciously react to the unfair treatment of her by putting off some task demanded of her. She may justify the delay by saying that she has too much on her hands, but in reality she’s procrastinating on the task to have some control over her life.
- Solution: Be outspoken and express your needs. Ask for some of your responsibilities to be shared by others. Set limits to how much you can do, demand assistance in the completion of some tasks and, if possible, delegate some to others. By procrastinating on work entrusted to you won’t send the message you need others to get. It will send the wrong message that you’re incapable of doing it, when in fact all you want is someone else to relieve you of part of the work that needs to be done. Explain to people what and how much you’re prepared to do and leave the rest to others. Being assertive will put you in more control of your life.
4. Rebellion – Unwillingness to give in to demands by the authorities
- Reaction: I won’t do it because some authority demands me to do it. I won’t do it because I’m told I have no choice but to do it, but I believe in free will.
- Reason: This reaction is a remnant from a rebellious phase in adolescence that is manifested in the person’s adult life for all the wrong reasons. A student who procrastinates on writing his term paper, an employee who drags out the completion of an assignment, or an individual who postpones filling out some document required by the government. These are examples of people who may have been rebellious in their youth and now, in some misguided way, are not taking action to complete their task because inherently they assume that they would be giving in to the authority. Their desire for independent action translates into an unconscious act of disobedience where it’s not needed and is, in fact, detrimental to them.
- Solution: Realize that you are in that situation because of your own free will, even though you have to follow somebody else’s rules. Attending college was your decision; admit that you can’t graduate without completing assignments. Working in a company to earn money was your decision; admit that you can’t keep your job if you don’t finish your tasks. You are a citizen or have become a resident of your country; acknowledge the fact that you cannot get things done at the government level without filling out their forms and submitting documents. All these can be a burden or annoying at times, but they still have to be done because we have chosen to be in a situation that demands them. Admitting this fact will help you realize that you can do these tasks and still be exercising your free will.
Next Post: Internally directed triggers of procrastination.
