Procrastination

Procrastination

By Christine Ferch

We all engage in procrastination at some point during our day, week, month, or year and involves engaging in tasks which are irrelevant to completing meaningful tasks. We will do this at our job, household tasks, situations which make us uncomfortable but there are ways that tips to overcome it. Any time we have to decide when we do something more so when we have to decide between doing something we enjoy and something we do not necessarily enjoy.

When we engage in procrastination, we set ourselves up for missing out on potentially fantastic opportunities. It prevents us from making the right decisions and living the life we want. Many research studies have demonstrated that people regret not doing the things they wished they had but blocked due to procrastination.

Those who are chronically procrastinating demonstrate difficulty with self-control and deliberately look for distractions. These thoughts and behaviours begin to take precedence over accomplishing goals or responsibilities and leads to further negative thoughts and behaviours. Procrastination also involves self-deception. At some level, we are aware of our actions and their consequences but changing our habits requires more effort than completing the task.

Why do we procrastinate?

Procrastination sets in because it has the power to override our willpower to engage in meaningful tasks. Intrinsic motivation is what helps reduce procrastination and build willpower because we see the purpose of our actions. We have a personal vision on a journey we want to create for ourselves.

We also may procrastinate because we fear we will enjoy it, we believe we will not enjoy it or want to avoid making ourselves unhappy. We may also fear the complexity of the task and believe we are unable to do it and fear to ask for help.

Origin of Procrastination

Many factors drive our desire to procrastinate or dither, ranging from personal thoughts about our ability to start and complete the task to anxious thoughts and feelings. Lack of structure space and low motivation also play a role in completing unpleasant tasks. Research on procrastination has shown to be linked with rumination, dithering, becoming fixated on negative thoughts, also linked with Depression.

For more information on rumination, check out my blog.

Is there a purpose to Procrastination

Procrastination is a self-defeating behaviour and can serve as a psychological purpose. For those struggling with perfectionism, it can protect them from fear of failure, judgment from others and self-condemnation. When we avoid unpleasant work and move our energy to other tasks, it allows us to feel like we were still productive; however, it sets up consequences later.

Consequences to Procrastinating

Procrastination may serve as an appropriate response, however, can have harmful emotional, physical and practical costs. Someone who struggles with procrastination may lose their job, which can lead to emotional and physical distress, such as problems with one’s health, such as hypertension and CVD.  Self-compassion can be helpful to reduce these consequences.

How to overcome procrastination

Yes, there are ways to overcome procrastination or use it appropriately, as there are times when procrastination is useful.

Changing our behaviour requires a regimen of consistency, establishing a routine, and positive habits can form. Cognitive Behavior Therapy can be an effective strategy for addressing the thoughts and feelings leading to engaging in procrastination. Additionally, these tips can also help:

1. Engage in Self-compassion, for more information, check out my blog on this topic.
2. Build “times to delay” in your schedule, so you do not feel overwhelmed and know you can take a break as these are also essential
3. Break large jobs into smaller, more achievable tasks. One step at a time!
4. Have empathy for mistakes and future self
5. Talk to yourself like you would talk to your friend
6. Create a personal vision, if goal setting is too hard, develop a personal vision of what you want to be accomplished
7. Create a to-do list and mark how much time it should take for each
8. Habit list: places all the new habits we need to learn on a list which can be marked off for progress
9. Meeting with myself: focus on what you want in the long-term planning and our personal growth. Identify what you have recently accomplished and the steps you took to make it happen.

Procrastination can be helpful as it may be a sign to take a break to reflect on our day and take a mental break. Other times, when it affects our ability to get meaningful and essential things done, problems can arise jeopardizing our physical and mental health.

The bonus, there are techniques such as the ones’ mentioned above, which can kick procrastination to the curb. If you procrastinate often, it may be helpful to reflect on the need to procrastinate and go from there. Start with addressing thoughts and feelings and behaviours will change.

For assistance in working through your reflection and settling on a regime such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, please contact us at admin@ovcs.ca, we can help!