Why Do We Procrastinate?

Why Do We Procrastinate?

Jadyn Strommen, Writer

Procrastination is something that all of us have experienced at some point in our lives, but for some people it’s an everyday struggle. Procrastination slows down the ability and drive to work towards goals and makes a person feel unproductive and unmotivated. You may tell yourself that you will get something done later even though you have no intention of getting it done. Procrastination is relying on your future self instead of making yourself do it in the present time. It happens most when we feel too overwhelmed to even start one task. So, how do we stop the cycle?

Sometimes, procrastination is caused by a subconscious fear of failure. If you’re a perfectionist, you dwell on very minor details and you may put things off because of fear that you won’t get it just right. You procrastinate to prevent the short-term feeling of failure. When you put things off for later, you are experiencing the failure you feared. To combat this, think of whatever you’re procrastinating with a positive outcome. Say, you have an essay due. Visualize yourself completing your essay and getting a good grade and positive feedback from your teacher. Allowing yourself to think this way causes less fear because instead of visualizing failure, you’re visualizing success.

Another cause is avoidance because you’re overwhelmed. When stuff keeps piling up we tend to procrastinate even more. Having a lot of things on your plate and not knowing where to start causes you to stay in your comfort zone. You may search for a more enjoyable task and “forget” about your harder tasks. This causes more stress as the deadline gets closer and closer. To stop this, take it one step at a time. Write a list of what you need to get done and pick one to do and forget about the rest. When one is done, look for another. When you take it slowly the tasks become less overwhelming and you feel more motivated.

You may procrastinate because you don’t prioritize your responsibilities. Being super busy and having a lot to get done can be challenging. This makes people multitask and go back and forth between tasks because they aren’t thinking of which task is the most important to get done. This results in unfinished work and deadlines that aren’t met. To prevent this, write out your tasks making the most important one first and something that could be saved for later, last. By doing this, you create a schedule and you stop multitasking therefore, completing your tasks.

No matter the cause, procrastination holds you back. Waking up earlier, working out, having a planner, and creating a list of your responsibilities will make you more organized. Organized people tend to procrastinate less. Wake up, look at your planner and pick out three things you want to get done that day. Continue to do this and watch procrastination become less of a worry for you. It can either be day one or one day, you choose.