Procrastinate, Why Do We Do It?
For sure you have been told “do not postpone what you can do today until tomorrow”. Procrastination really means postponing something to another time and it is a trend that unites many people.
Those who have a habit of procrastinating often cannot avoid putting things off. It is as if a force majeure intervenes that has nothing to do with laziness, but with other factors.
Factors that lead to procrastination
As we have already anticipated, procrastination means delaying the fulfillment of an obligation or the development of an action.
When this attitude becomes a habit, it is referred to as a behavior disorder which may also require psychological support as a treatment.
1. Anxiety
Many people tend to procrastinate because they don’t know how to manage their emotions properly and the stress they experience ends up turning into anxiety.
These individuals have anxious personalities, they get distracted, they may see a project as too big or interminable and that is why they decide to procrastinate what they should do.
Sometimes, it’s not even about having other things to take care of. In fact, these people tend to waste time or devote themselves to petty things instead of getting things done.
Anxious people tend to procrastinate through self-deception or excuses such as:
- “Now I’m not focused, I’ll do it tomorrow when I’m most inspired”.
- “ I don’t feel very well, I will dedicate myself to more ‘mechanical’ things and I will carry out the important activities when I get better “.
- “I have other things that I can complete now, I will dedicate myself to these and leave the most important one at the end.”
In other words, those who are anxious look for the immediate reward to chase away the uncomfortable feeling they experience. However, in the long run, she will struggle to manage this habit.
2. Lack of organization
When it comes to procrastination, people who tend to postpone are likely to have a serious organizational problem.
Each of us must look for ways to organize ourselves in the best possible way, considering the fact that we are all different.
Either way, you need to always consider which things to prioritize.
There are several things that we can postpone to a later time, perhaps because we can plan them or entrust them to other people.
Generally, however, we always put off things that have top priority. A good organization can put an end to this habit and prevent us from finding ourselves with water in our throats.
To plan things out, we can refer to their priority using the Eisenhower or Covey matrix to properly manage the time available.
Eisenhower’s model has four quadrants whose classification is made on the basis of importance and urgency. Using this matrix can help break the habit of procrastinating.
3. The mistake of underestimating time
Underestimating time is something that laggards have in common. They think they have more time than they actually have to do something before a date with friends, for example.
People who procrastinate tend to underestimate time and this trend is supported by excuses or self-deception.
For example, a person who has a habit of procrastinating thinks he can complete a project in two days.
However, complications, doubts or problems can arise that alter the time available.
This is why stress then arises, the deadline is not met and the work is not done as it should. All this leads to unrewarding results.
In order for this not to happen, it is important to keep in mind the previously mentioned Eisenhower matrix.
It will be useful to focus on urgent things, eliminating anxiety and the tendency to underestimate the time available.
If we get rid of a task that doesn’t motivate us, we can devote ourselves to something less important, but that makes us feel like we’ve made progress.
