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Procrastination

Overcome procrastination and get on with your life

Everyone procrastinates from time to time. We put off doing things that we don't want to do, or we just don't get around to completing something until it becomes a rush job. For most people this happens from time to time and is not a major issue. For some though, procrastination is a problem. Procrastination takes over their life and they want it back. As difficult and impossible as it may seem, it is achievable.

Procrastination can contribute to increased stress as well as guilt for many individuals. Chronic procrastination can not only increase the stress in your life, but may also be an indicator of some other physiological or psychological issue in your life. If you believe this to be the case, you should seek help from a counsellor or therapist.

What triggers your procrastination? More often than not, people procrastinate not because they are lazy, but because of some other reasons. Is it because your boss is nasty and is a slave-driver? Is it because your wife is nagging you? Or is it because you are just so swamped? Before you can stop procrastinating, you need to figure out what the underlying reason for your procrastination is.

Know the Root Cause

If you react to challenges and stress by being passive-aggressive and then procrastinating, then you need to correct your attitudes. Some people retaliate on others by procrastinating on delivering their requests. But if you are just procrastinating because you are so busy at the moment, then you have to organize and prioritize. Weed out the root of your procrastination: understand yourself. Only then can you take the steps to stop it.

Procrastination can be caused by avoiding difficult tasks in favour of easier tasks, intense fear of failure, social self consciousness, anxiety, low moods, working too much, perfectionists who are unwilling to start something because they fear not completing the task to their satisfaction, underlying mental health issues, compulsive behaviour such as spending too much time playing games, and a host of other reasons that contribute to putting things off until another day. For example, a student could be afraid to work hard because they failed an assignment they slogged a month for. This could lead to the fear that they are simply not good enough, and they reason that if they don’t put in the effort, they will not find out if they are dumb. Similarly you could be dreading work due to emotions of anger. Perhaps your previous project was well done, but your manager stole the credit for it completely. This could lead to feelings of resentment and unwillingness to put in your best effort.

Correct Your Thoughts

When you catch yourself thinking like a victim and being passive-aggressive, correct yourself. Passive-aggressiveness is not a good way to deal with stress and challenges. You have to own up to your anger, your irritation, and be honest with yourself and with your “adversary” about it.

Honesty dispels a lot of negativity by flashing the light of truth on it. There is something refreshing when you are honest with yourself. If you notice, when you are honest about your emotions and about everything in your life, you feel light. If you have been in denial or have been lying for so long, then you finally decide to make a clean breast out of things through honesty, then chances are, you'll feel lighter upon your moment of honest revelation.

Thus, when you deal with stress through procrastination, stop yourself. Admit what you feel. Confront your “enemy” in as civil or even gentle manner as possible. Try to arrive at a solution or at least a compromise. Then move on and finish what you have to do.

Do not succumb to thoughts that tell you that you are a victim. Face it; life is not exactly a good model for equality. But you can actually choose to deal with its unfair moments in a constructive manner. Let it spur you on instead of breaking your back.

Practical Tips

You need to deal with things in a systematic, objective way - through prioritization and organization. It is not enough to recognize you have a problem, and identify what it is. You need to take action.

If your issue is with poor time management, learn to plan your day realistically to complete tasks. If on the other hand your issue is with prioritization, or the lack thereof, that is not going to help you. Rank your tasks from the most important and urgent to the least, and tick them off as they are done. Stick to the goal of finishing the list. And don't make room for excuses. Just go and do it.

If you find yourself often forgetting appointments and deadlines, get a notebook or a diary and jot down all the important dates and tasks as they take place everyday. Make this a permanent habit, and ensure that you check it everyday to ensure that you are well on schedule to completing your work in time.

Set goals that are realistic and then make progress to achieving these goals. Even if you have to set small goals and make progress you will be heading in the right direction. One helpful trick is to use the five-minute method. Basically, start a task that you have an aversion for with the idea that you will spend five productive minutes working at this task. Just starting the task will reduce some of the anxiety you have and make it easier to continue. Continue in five minute chunks, gradually increasing the time you spend until the task is completed.

And Finally ...

Procrastination has cost more hours and money than anything else. Procrastination has delayed projects and grounded programs to a halt. It's time to stop it dead in its tracks. May these tips to deal with procrastination help you accomplish whatever needs to be done. Remember, be realistic with your expectations and your solutions, and persevere! Just like habit takes time to build up, it also takes time to overcome.

Good Luck!