Procrastination and How to Avoid Putting Things Off

I have one thing on my to-do list that I can’t seem to check off. It follows my new list each day, riding on the bottom like gum on my shoe that I can’t quite scrape off. It’s sticky and annoying, but I can’t bring myself to deal with it. I always come up with an excuse, even if it’s the only thing I need to take care of. I just got off work and it’s late, I’m too tired, I’d rather hang with friends, and the list goes on and on. I’ll get it done tomorrow. But tomorrow can be a slippery slope, sometimes it means tomorrow, and sometimes it becomes two weeks from now. I become frustrated with myself for not just doing the task, but I can’t bring myself to do it either. If this sounds like you, just know that you’re not alone.

Procrastination is a common behavior, in which the affected person puts off a task, regardless of difficulty. It often happens when someone’s drive to delay is stronger than their drive to act and is categorized by short-term satisfaction and long-term stress. People sometimes equate procrastination to laziness, but that’s not the case. Procrastination is an active action, it’s a choice to actively avoid a task until absolutely necessary. It’s linked to negative effects, and yet we keep doing it anyway, why?

Procrastination is tied to other complicated psychological factors. People who procrastinate tend to have high-stress levels, anxiety, and poor impulse control (procrastinating is seen as an impulsive action). There are a whole slew of things that can cause someone to procrastinate. Poor study habits, feeling overwhelmed, perfectionism, ADHD, low motivation, overstimulating environment, depression, anxiety, fear, and the list goes on. One of the main causes that we see now is stress. Everyone experiences stress during their daily lives, but we’re seeing an influx in stress levels worldwide following the pandemic. So, how can we avoid channeling our stress in procrastination?

Acknowledgment – The first step to overcoming anything is to acknowledge that you are having a hard time. It’s the same with procrastination. You have to take note of when you’re putting things off and if that’s becoming a pattern of behavior for you. You can’t change if you don’t realize you’re doing an action that may harm you long-term. It’s also to think about the reasons why you may be procrastinating. Is it due to stress? Do you have a fear of failure? Are you overwhelmed or burnt out? These are all important questions to ask when devising a strategy to avoid putting things off.

Goal-Setting – Most procrastination stems from a task feeling too large, daunting, or overwhelming. It may be helpful to split the task into smaller chunks for it to be more manageable. It’s a good idea to try to set smaller goals to keep your momentum up, you feel more productive the more things you can check off of your to-do list. Setting smaller goals may be more realistic about what you are willing to get done and may increase what is possible for you in multiple small sessions rather than in one large session.

Rewards – Giving yourself some sort of small reward may be helpful to motivate you into doing your tasks. With smaller projects, it’s easier to complete which means you can boost your own enjoyment with rewards for completing tasks. People often use short breaks, sweets, fun drinks, or even an activity that you would like to do instead of completing tasks. Building good behaviors and reducing procrastination is a long process, and getting those tasks done is building habits, which is a hard thing to do. Don’t be afraid to reward yourself with something simple for working hard.

Putting things off from time to time is normal, but long-term procrastination can have serious detriments to your mental and physical health. It’s crucial to take preventative steps to keep yourself from falling into the slippery slope of chronic procrastination. It’s not easy, but a plan and some commitment can make all the difference in becoming your most reliable self, you got this!