Every time I do a speaking engagement, I ask the audience, “Raise your hand if you ever procrastinate.”
About 75% of the audience raises their hand and the other 25% is lying. (LOL)
We are all guilty of succumbing to the definition ofprocrastination: to be slow or late about doing something that should be done; to delay doing something until a later time because you do not want to do it.
Procrastination occasionally or on less important items on your to-do list is normal and should not be cause for alarm.
However, when procrastination takes a toll on the quality of your life and you continue to do it, then it must be addressed. Procrastination is a habit and it negatively impacts the quality of life for many people.
In order for you to tackle the habit of procrastination, here’s the ONE thing that you need to know:
Procrastination is about fear. Yes, you heard me right. Most of us don’t make
the direct correlation between putting things off and fear, but the sooner that you become aware of this, the better off you’ll be the next time you find yourself making the decision to procrastinate or not.
Keep in mind that being fearful does not have to mean “horror movie scared” where there is a monster lurking in the shadows. In this case, the correlation between procrastination and fear is about avoiding something that you don’t want.
When you put something off, it is usually due to:
- fear of failure
- fear of not knowing how to do something
- fear of doing it wrong
- fear of it not being perfect
- fear of judgment from others
- fear of the task in question being less enjoyable than what you’re doing now (which in some cases, what you’re doing now is doing nothing, and you believe that doing absolutely nothing is more enjoyable than doing what needs to be done.)
The next time you have a decision to make either to do what needs to be done or to put it off, check in with fear. Ask yourself what you’re trying to avoid. Then, remember that FEAR has two meanings:
1. Forget Everything And Run
or
2. Face Everything And Rise
Acknowledge that you don’t want to do something, identify WHY you don’t want to do it, and then choose to face it in order to make your life easier and to feel more accomplished.
This is the perfect segue to help you make the distinction between what you’re actually doing and what you think you’re doing.
People often procrastinate because in the moment, they think they’re making their lives more enjoyable by choosing to do something more pleasurable now, whether it be doing more research before making a decision, hanging out with friends, watching Netflix, or sitting there staring at the wall.
However, in reality, what they’re actually doing is the opposite of what they think they’re doing. They think they’re choosing pleasure in the moment, but what’s actually happening is choosing pain because avoiding the task and letting time go by is going to increase stress.
So, the next time you’re faced with the decision to procrastinate or not, be honest with yourself that choosing to put things off is only going to make you feel worse.
Remember the two meanings of fear, and choose wisely.
Making the wiser decision to be proactive instead of procrastinating is a skill. Just like any other skill, it takes practice.
Like any new skill, it may be hard at first. But mastering time management and tackling procrastination is worth the effort. Making time to plan your time will give you more time to do what you enjoy…and that doesn’t sound scary at all.
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