(ThyBlackMan.com) If you are reading this, then you have probably put aside doing something important. Why aren’t you doing it now? Before you answer, don’t feel bad, because according to “Psychology Today“, “Psychological Science” & “American Psychological Association“, 20% of people are labeled as procrastinators, and as high as 25% in the U.S. Alone. People who procrastinate are those who put off doing something until the very last minute. As we dissect and examine procrastination, we want you to know that there are some redeeming traits to this vice.
The greatest characteristic most procrastinators have is high optimism. They are optimistic about their ability to delay a certain task and complete it later, in the shorter amount of time. Their high hopes often keep them in this cycle of future procrastination. Another trait they can have is the ability to prioritize. They figure, certain things are more urgent and demanding of their time, so they tend to give action to those things instead. They reason the task they are delaying is of low importance or will take lower amounts energy to accomplish. The last good quality they have is doing what they enjoy most of the time. Most procrastinators would
rather be doing something they love instead of what they need to be doing or have been assigned to do and often choose to do what they love in its place. This leads to personal fulfillment and satisfaction, which could also further delay commencing on a project they dislike.
Things that lead one to procrastinate are stress, laziness, fear, worry, lack of skill, lack of motivation, lack of discipline, a false perception of time, indecision, perfectionism, and an arousal, yes, that is true in some documented cases; from doing last minute tasks. These things lead to varying degrees of procrastination. Further research indicates these things all point to one main obsession: pain. The level of pain, from internal struggling or range of discomfort to task difficulty, is the emotional reasons one chooses to procrastinate.
Although procrastination may not be taken as seriously as other conditions like alcohol or drug addiction, it still produces results that are just as appalling. Unfortunately, procrastinators are often operating in somewhat of a hypocritical state; that is. They say one thing and really do something quite the opposite. Almost certainly that is because it is their way of putting off until tomorrow what they should really be doing today. Some immense procrastinators say that doing things at the last minute, makes them more creative or the pressure makes them work harder if not smarter.
Yet, this is only a belief that has no substantial facts to prove it. They only are more creative or work harder because they have no choice than to complete the task at hand. They also have a false sense of security in timing, believing that they have plenty of time to complete any given project, only to realize at a later instance, that they really don’t have enough time to do an adept and thorough job. So they become poor managers of time. In addition, the procrastinator may think he is too busy to start the work they really should be effectual on.
They may consciously or unconsciously crowd their lives with things to do that aren’t important or spread their responsibilities so thinly, that they don’t schedule time to do effectively. Another may pick the path of a procrastinator because he truly does not feel he can handle the responsibility. Thinking he is truly inept, he doesn’t want to discover that truth or even try, so he delays doing it. This produces low self-regard and self-esteem; conversely, procrastination can send a subliminal message to others about ones personality that he or she is a person of pride, stubbornness, or manipulation. Whether or not this is true, that is the message apparent. These vices are used to tell others that he or she will start the project on his or her own schedule, while disregarding others’ time, work, and expectations.
These various excuses to procrastinate are obstacles to dealing with experiences that would force people to grow through a certain degree of pain. In order to break through these barriers that have probably been internally built over time is to take the initiative to grow as a person. This is the first step to curing procrastination: your resolve. Decide that you want to improve, even if you have to take small steps to eliminate this vice from your life.
The next step is to discover what your personal reasons in procrastinating are and eradicate them. It could be the actual work; you’re feeling about the work, or how you approach the work. Find out why you procrastinate and list all the reasons contained in the above paragraphs that apply to you. Then one by one, eliminate them by doing or thinking the extreme opposite or making an argument against delaying it.
The final step is to start doing things every day, without excuse, to tackle something you used to avoid. Let’s say you have the task of adding bookshelves to child’s homework area. Realize that you don’t have to do it all in one sitting; break the project up into steps for overall completion and begin the first day you take delivery of the project, by just studying other similar bookshelves. Nothing more and nothing less. Then, the next day, you can decide the dimensions in length, width, and height that you want the shelves to be and jot them down. The following day, you can draft the outside structure of the shelves perimeter, and so on. You can continue doing one task a day until you complete it. No more waiting to start it! Make this a new rule to begin the day you discover you have a project. You may perhaps find yourself finishing ahead of schedule.
This motivation to start and finish, needs to be continuously fueled. Different people have different ways of fueling themselves. Some can use focusing on the end result, or not having to do it anymore once finished, as a motivation. Others think about who the task will affect and refuse to shift the burden to others anymore. Still another might determine to work on their teamwork skills and start to pick up his or her responsibility. Procrastinators must find what is the single motivator out of several that will keep their new resolve going. An essential thing to consider is that research has shown that some procrastinators actually have lower resistance immunity systems and get sick more often. Armed with this bit of information even those of us that are quite punctual with task should maintain a determination to fight the urge to procrastinate.
You no longer have an excuse, having read this article to “not start” something you’ve been putting off. We have come to the conclusion and now the rest is up to you. You write how the story ends, hopefully it will be a good ending and always remember, ‘’never put off until tomorrow what you can do today!”
Staff Writer; Stanley G. Buford
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