It’s a good thing that you have decided to deal with Procrastination by reading this article. (Of course if you have procrastinated, you won’t be here right now!)
Yes, it is true that procrastination is not easy to deal with. I understand that you may want to deal with it ‘later’. Unfortunately, later always turns into the present. And as we feel the pinch of the present we try to come up with another later to make ourselves feel better that we will get things done eventually. This disruptive cycle continues until we run into serious problems involving broken relationships, lost income opportunities, or even death through sickness.
It is indeed, very scary to think about the destructive aspects of what the effects of procrastination can have on one’s self.
The interesting thing about procrastination, is that procrastinators aren’t born. They’re in fact MADE. What is the difference between a successful person and a procrastinator? The successful person has learned to deal with procrastination. So in essence every single one of us are procrastinators.
So WHY do we procrastinate?
Really it comes down to one very simple reason: we DON’T WANT to do it! The solution lies in convincing your mind that it is pleasurable to do those things we are avoiding. The only difference between a highly successful person and a heavy procrastinator is that the first one knows how to deal with procrastination more effectively. That is it! Overcoming procrastination is something absolutely anyone can learn.
In the next audio in this series we’ll get started. We will identify the three major types of procrastinators and how to begin to overcome procrastination.
How to Finish What You Started
In the last chapter we started to talk about some of the destructive aspects of procrastination, and WHY we procrastinate.
Today we will identify the three major types of procrastinators.
It is true that busy people can be the worst procrastinators. Every time to speak with them they are busy, busy, busy! Always in a hurry, they are constantly rushing around. In some cases the reason is that subconsciously it makes them feel superior to be doing so many things. But in reality they are simply poor managers of their time.
They are inefficient at time management and often highly disorganized. If this is you then it is very important to take an inventory of what you’re doing, and to improve your organization and time management skills. However, time management is not the cure. Telling a procrastinator to buy a day planner is like telling someone who is dressed to simply cheer up.
However, improving one’s organizational and time management skills are completely doable tasks. For example, do you understand the subtle difference between doing things right and doing the right things? If you always seem to have no time and never seemed to be accomplishing your goals, then you are probably not doing the right things. The cause of this is that you are likely task oriented, and need a little shaking up in that area.
Dr. J R Ferrari is the co-editor of Procrastination and Task Avoidance: Theory, Research and Treatment and other researchers have shown similar patterns in habitual procrastinators.
The three types of procrastinators are:
1. Arousal procrastinators are thrill seekers, who get a rush from leaving something until the very last minute and then working like a whirlwind to complete the task.
2. The second is avoidant procrastinators. They are insecure; they shirk because they fear failure.
3. The final type is decisional procrastinators. They seemingly can’t make a decision and in their mind, not making a decision absolves them of the
responsibility of the outcome of events.
There are big costs to procrastination and the biggest is usually your health. Colds, headaches, stomach issues, and neck or back pain are just a few examples of the health costs that procrastinators pay.
They lead very stressful lives. And procrastinators tend to consume more alcohol among those who drink. It is another example of a coping mechanism that is in place to disengage from the feelings of stress and avoidance.
Why is Procrastination Destructive to our Lives?
Procrastination is subtle. Really subtle. The way it works is so subtle that it eats away voracious amounts of time and we don’t even realize it. How innocent it seems, to let time slip by. We deceive ourselves into dealing with it the next minute, next hour or the next day or month.
Somehow, we always feel that it will somehow get done by itself. Yet, at the end of the day, there still isn’t enough time to get things done. We know that life gives us it’s fair share and 24 hours a day to the rich, poor, famous, invalid, busy or lazy person. Time is fair in the sense that we have the choice to do exactly whatever we want with our 24 hours.
You get only 24 hours and not a second more or less. What makes procrastination so deadly is the fact that life is full of sob stories on how people had such a wonderful plan and a great idea that somehow, never came to life or conceptualized in the real world.
Imagine if Albert Einstein procrastinated and decided to write the theory of relativity much later while he played with his dog now (assuming he had one)? Or if Thomas Edison decided to invent the light bulb once he has got his things out of the way. Perhaps today we will still be using candles.
That is just a hypothetical example but you get the idea how destructive procrastination is. Procrastination must be dealt with. Period. You have to be very clear in your mind what the destructive effects of procrastination are and how you must deal with it NOW, not later.
Dealing with Procrastination: What We Are Up Against
How do we deal with procrastination? First, we must be very clear that procrastination is a symptom of many flawed characteristic traits.There is no action in the world that is taken without any form of motivation behind it.
However, most motivation can be summarized into two forms:
Gain motivation AND prevention motivation (in other words, prevention of pain). It is a crazy mind game, but somehow you will find that most people are able to motivate themselves in ways that allows them to defy the odds and accomplish great things. They have two hands, two legs, two eyes and one mouth. What makes them (normally) different from the rest of us?
Motivation. No one procrastinates something in and of itself. There is a reason behind everything. There are many forms of motivation that I can share about now. One of it is by doing something that you enjoy. Most people who are struggling with starting a business, for example, find that the more their business is focused on their favorite hobby, the more they will work hard at it.
Working at something you like doesn’t feel like work!
People drag themselves out of bed every morning to go to work, but wake up extra early to head on to the golf course! Why? Motivation. Find what motivates you the most and try and apply it to your tasks. Never ever neglect this mindset.
Useful Time Management Strategies
Procrastinators are busy people. In fact, busy people can be the worst procrastinators. Every time to speak with them they are busy, busy, busy! Always in a hurry, they are constantly rushing around. In some cases the reason is that subconsciously it makes them feel superior to be doing so many things. But in reality they are simply poor managers of their time. They are inefficient at time management and often highly disorganized.
You can sit down and analyze, read a dozen books about self-motivation, and even talk to others about it, but it all counts for nothing if you don’t take practical measures. As a matter of fact, you have made tremendous progress fighting procrastination by reading this book and have come this far.
We have covered a lot on procrastination. But I have a suggestion on how to apply these things into real life. One of the most practical applications you can do is to write down a to do list.
A list of things to do each day and week is a valuable aid to managing your time and eliminating inefficiency. What it does is that it helps you organize your thinking and planning into a sheet of paper.
When you write things down on a list, your mind becomes focused (like the example of the archer above). Your subconscious mind starts formulating strategies and creating solutions on how to solve your problem because it is narrowed down to something small and easy to read.
I have more practical examples and tools you can download in my book because I have compiled all the information into a complete book. I’ll be sure to send you an email with all the details.
I have already said everything that I can say for now. It is all up to you to make that decision and that decision is to overcome procrastination once and for all. Take action now and don’t procrastinate. It is time to claim YOUR life BACK!
