Procrastination is more than “Putting Off”.
Procrastination is more than
“Putting Off”.
When the task feels “Meh” and our energy is low, how the hell do we motivate ourselves and get into action?
Is there more to it than simply not fancying the task? What if we’re serial procrastinators? Does this mean we’re in the wrong job?
Firstly, let’s define procrastination. Procrastination is...
“Deciding to delay or not complete a task you’ve committed to, and instead doing something of lesser importance, despite there being negative consequences.”
There are a few key words that jump out to me here - committed - importance - consequences. I don’t know about you, but those words feel very heavy and not so much fun! They remind me of sacrifice, and interestingly focus on the past and future rather than the present, which is essentially the problem with procrastination.
So why do we procrastinate?
There are several reasons why we might procrastinate and they each have a very different energetic flavour - yes I made that term up but I like it. 😊 Here are a few of my favourites.
Confused.com - Missing Puzzle Pieces
A simple, yet debilitating reason, can be that we don’t have a clear enough handle on what’s required of us to complete the task. Particularly in a new role, with a new project etc, we may feel primed and ready to go in those creative and collaborative phases, and once we sit down alone to get going, feel overcome with a sense of brain fog and second guessing.
Rather than ask for help we waste time trying to muddle our way to answers, with a heavy dose of procrastinating down rabbit holes. This can lead to sitting there wasting mental energy debating possibilities and primarily being concerned with looking stupid! The answer is clearly to seek help but we can mitigate the perceived damage to our work-cred by trying a few things first.
Ask yourself the following questions:
1 - What is the purpose of this task - the outcome?
2 - Can I break this down into stages?
3 - Which stage is the “frog”* which needs eating first?
4 - What would be a realistic time frame to do each stage?
5 - Share with a colleague and get their advice as to whether you’ve hit upon the most efficient path.
* Productivity consultant Brain Tracy coined the phrase “eat the frog” method after this vivid piece of advice from Mark Twain:
“If it's your job to eat a frog, it's best to do it first thing in the morning. And If it's your job to eat two frogs, it's best to eat the biggest one first.”
Perfectionism - Done is Better than Perfect
Perfectionism, whilst similar, is perhaps a more persistent offender, regardless of the task in front of you. The ironic thing about this self-sabotage is that we end up doing a mediocre job, or even worse, regularly overwork to make up for the time wasted procrastinating.
If you resonate with the “perfectionist” badge, you likely have high expectations of yourself and may want to prove how capable you are to others, even if subconsciously. Starting or completing a piece of work and claiming it as “finished” can therefore feel like a mountainous task. Adding, tweaking and delaying completion, also means time away from the next task and we travel further along the path to overwhelm.
To challenge this perfectionist energy, we first have to recognise it - scrutinise whether fear of imperfection, “not-good-enough” or even fear of success is the reason you’re dragging your heels. Then you might like to try the following:
1 - Try to release the fear that it needs to be perfect by reminding yourself your work is usually amazing - trust yourself!
2 - Future pace imperfection - imagine the work has not gone perfectly and practise feeling comfortable with this.
3 - Rehearse telling yourself “this is good enough for now” and “done is better than perfect”. You can serve more powerfully by being decisive.
Not Seeing the Big Picture - Undervaluing the Rewards
A common reason people procrastinate and eventually end up overwhelmed, is that they don’t buy into the “why” behind the task. They have little control over the tasks given to them and fail to understand the significance of them in relation to the bigger picture of the organisation.
As with the self-sabotaging behaviours already mentioned, this lack of motivation can be seen in people suffering burnout - the sense of apathy can be overbearing and make getting into action feel like walking through treacle.
If this is you: 1 - Remember a time when you did feel motivated by the common goals and outcomes of the team.
2 - Recall the emotions, thoughts and feelings in your body when you were working towards your cause.
3- Looking at the task in front of you, can you keep completing the sentence “So that…” for each stage of the task until you reach the “Why” of what you’re doing.
All of the above reasons we procrastinate have two key things in common - they present demotivating and hindering factors. Our fear of judgement, the anxiety about getting things less than perfect, has the opposite effect of motivation - demotivating and sucking energy. Additionally, not having all the resources we need to complete the task, hinders our efficacy and weakens our self control.
If we can practise recognising the unhelpful thoughts such as “I’ll do it later”, and scrutinise why we’re resisting action, then we can save ourselves the energy drain of wasting time deliberating and avoiding.
In my burnout coaching, the advice which helps my clients make a shift into action is practising tolerating the discomfort of procrastination. Yes, using the methods mentioned above they may find a spark of energy, but sometimes they need to feel the resistance and get on with it anyway, rather than waiting for it to magically disappear!
My favourite quote from David Burns in his seminal work on Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, states,
"You are not entitled to feel motivated until after you've started and you're well into the task."
There will be tasks you’re never going to want to do so it is futile waiting for motivation. Action begets action. Start small.
Reward efforts and always, always celebrate the end of the task; recognising our efforts (however small) and relishing the sense of satisfaction, will only help us pull our socks up the next time.
I know none of the above is especially easy and speak as someone with a “Restless”* self-sabotaging monster driving me, always seeking something more interesting. Curiosity and self-awareness is the only way to defeat procrastination. If we can observe those feelings, inwardly smile, roll our eyes at those pesky thoughts and picture our achievement, we will win the day.
Enjoy your frogs! 😊
Jo
*p.s. If you’d like to know what particular saboteurs are driving your procrastination and other burnout-creating behaviours, book in for a complimentary chat.
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References:
Tracy, Brian. Eat That Frog!: Get More Of The Important Things Done Today. Hodder Paperbacks (31 Jan. 2013)
Burns, David. Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy. Avon; 2nd edition (5 May 2000)