The Solution to Procrastinating
Procrastination is a very common experience in life. Putting off things that we know we should be doing. When people acknowledge that they are procrastinating on a task, they become very negative. Many view procrastination as a personal failing.
“I know I should be doing this but I’m not. All I need to do is get started but I’m finding every excuse not to. Why aren’t I doing it? There’s something wrong with me. Why am I sabotaging my success?”
There are lots of reasons why people procrastinate including:
- The task seems overwhelming
- You don’t know where to start
- You’re afraid to start (often secondary to lack of confidence about having the ability to carry out the task)
- The task seems unpleasant
When I see the above list, it makes me feel that procrastination is anything but a personal failing. On the contrary, if you actually felt like a task was unpleasant, scary or overwhelming then the logical response would be to procrastinate on doing it.
When you think about it this way, you see that procrastinating is a very valuable signal. It shows that your project hasn’t been framed correctly.
What do I mean by framed correctly?
Taking the first two reasons for procrastinating, it is clear that if a task is too large or too vague then it will feel overwhelming and you won’t know where to start. That’s a failing in the structure of your project.
In this case, you need to divide up your project goal into smaller sub-goals. If the sub-goals are also too big then they can be divided up again. Going back to the principle of Thinking Big but Starting Small, the first task that needs doing should be made as small as possible just to get the ball rolling.
With the third and fourth reasons people procrastinate, the problem is more in the mental framing of the task. What is it that you are afraid of or find unpleasant about the task? Is it lack of knowledge or skill? In that case you may need to do some more research or ask someone that can help.
Procrastinating on an unpleasant task may often stem from the perception that the task offers no value relative to the downside. In this case, trying to find the (hidden) value in the task can help. The most unpleasant, boring task can have some value, even if it is just to develop the skill of tolerance!
Action Step
The next time you catch yourself procrastinating, think about the reasons why you’re actually avoiding the task. Within those reasons will be the solution to re-framing the project. I have yet to see a project that couldnt be re-framed to make it easier to take action on.
So many people perceive themselves as absolutely crippled by the disease of procrastination…. I don’t think there’s an easy answer. This is a lengthy & pretty cool booklet I’m still trying to digest in its entirety: “The Little Guide to Beating Procrastination, Perfectionism and Blocks.” And for a mind-blowing theory on the original cause of procrastination, I highly recommend you look up Stefan Molyneaux’s video entitled “Procrastination” on youtube.
[Reply]
Comment by RR — June 25, 2009 @ 6:41 pm
I have big problems with procrastinating. I will certainly try out some of your suggestions. Thanks!
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Comment by Steve — June 26, 2009 @ 8:28 am
I think a lot of people don’t even realise they are procrastinating. When you do a lower value task, even if it is of “some value”, and by doing so, avoid a higher value task, then you are procrastinating.
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Comment by Nick — June 29, 2009 @ 10:15 am
I kept putting off reading this article
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Comment by Frank the Fearless — June 30, 2009 @ 10:20 am
I have a diploma assignment due, and I have been putting it off, and surfing the net, doing anything but the assignment. Then I found your site. And you help me with my procrastination. Thanks!
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Comment by Cleo K — July 1, 2009 @ 11:05 pm
[...] article on Procrastination: Overcoming Procrastination by Steve Pavlina And these articles: The Solution to Procrastinating | The Kaizan Blog Structured Procrastination But it all seems like theory. Does anyone have any proof that these [...]
Pingback by Can I learn to stop Procrastinating? I dont think so — July 2, 2009 @ 8:52 am
I have a few issues with procrastination. I thought this was a good article, especially the part about structuring the task better. Theres nothing worse than a vague task
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Comment by Andrew — July 20, 2009 @ 7:14 pm
Procrastination cant be beaten from reading one article, but this has some good pointers in it.
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Comment by Brian — July 23, 2009 @ 10:18 am
[...] exceedingly boring or just plain unpleasant. We’ve talked before about how to deal with procrastination, but here is another string to your [...]
Pingback by A Great Trick for Overcoming Procrastination | The Kaizan Blog — July 30, 2009 @ 9:07 am