The True Reason You Procrastinate and How to Beat It Effectively
Read this before you try a new productivity hack to beat procrastination.
Back in Med school, we did case presentations as part of our training. We had to gather information about the patient’s problems, examine them and arrive at a likely diagnosis or offer a differential list of possible causes.
In one particular instance, I had to present the case of a 40-year-old man who reported high spiking temperatures for over a week. Nothing was exciting in his story or my findings to point to any particular cause. So, I, rather confidently, concluded that the man suffered from an “Acute febrile illness”. (Just a fancy term for fever of short duration.)
The consultant was amused and said, “Well, I don’t need you to tell me that. The patient made that abundantly clear, didn’t he?”
It took me a while to understand what he meant. The problem was I merely paraphrased the patient’s symptom and presented it as the diagnosis.
The fever was not the problem. It was only a manifestation of a problem — the actual one I was tasked with finding.
What does this story have to do with Procrastination? you might ask. We often make the same mistake while thinking about and managing Procrastination.
We think of Procrastination as the actual problem when it is merely a symptom of a much bigger issue.
But, why is it crucial to make this distinction?
The 101 causes of fever and more.
Let’s revisit the fever scenario. There are more reasons to have a high temperature than you can count. From nasty bugs (and there are a bunch of different kinds of them) to brain tumours to a bleed in the brain- a fever could mean anything.
And each of these problems needs to be dealt with differently. You can take Calpol to address the fever. But, unless you get to the bottom of it and fix the underlying cause, any relief is only temporary. You cannot cure cancer with Calpol, can you?
Likewise, there are a bazillion reasons why you procrastinate. And like how Calpol is enough to treat a simple viral fever, productivity hacks will work if it is a one-off, not-so-deep-rooted problem.
If your problem is recurrent, chronic and severe, it is time to dig deep and address the actual issue.
So, Why do you procrastinate?
Simply put, Procrastination is an avoidance response.
Our brains are wired to avoid pain and seek pleasure. So, we are happy to do fun, rewarding, easy, and enjoyable things.
But not all painful things are equal. We will accept and tolerate unpleasant things as long as the reward is worthy of that pain.
How you define what pain is worthy and what is pleasurable is uniquely personal.
So, Why you procrastinate is the million-dollar question that only you can answer.
To get the ball rolling and give your brain some fooder, I have tried to analyze and present a few reasons. These are from my experience with Procrastination, which isn’t all-inclusive, albeit vast. I have tried to offer a few solutions that have worked for me. See if they ring a bell with you. If you have more to add to the list, be my guest and leave them in the comments.
Let’s dig deep.
1. You procrastinate on things that you don’t want to do.
This one is pretty simple. These are things you think are not rewarding, or the effort and stress are simply not worth it. These are also tasks that don’t match your goals, dreams and values.
It could be anything from the project you reluctantly agreed to because you couldn’t say no to your boss; It could be not going to the gym because you don’t really enjoy lifting weights.
Solution:
Ask yourself a simple question. “Can I get rid of it or get away without doing it?”
Anything that doesn’t add value or joy to your life should be eliminated and replaced with something that does.
If you hate going to the gym, try taking dance lessons that you enjoy.
There is a caveat, though. What about tasks and commitments you cannot wriggle out of, for example, the project you agreed to take on at work?
If you can’t get rid of it, bite the bullet and get it done.
- Try to look on the bright side. (You might have to look hard). Framing the problem or task as something that benefits you can motivate you to do it. There must be something you can gain from the experience.
- If nothing helps, imagine the relief you will feel when you finally get the dreadful thing off your plate. Take that as the reward.
2. Things you think you want to do — but for the wrong reasons.
Why we want to do something matters as much as what we do.
If we are driven by fear, guilt, or shame, the whole experience is tainted by negativity. And that negativity can dampen your efforts because you don’t enjoy the process or the outcome.
Say you decide to go to the gym and want to lose weight only because you hate your appearance.
Every time you go to the gym, you might be reminded how much you dislike your body. You might compare yourself to those with perfect looks and feel ashamed. This will erode your will to exercise. Sooner or later, you will stop going to the gym altogether.
External motivation works well. But, it can also backfire when it is not strong enough, or it is a constant reminder of our own flaws.
Solution:
If you are procrastinating on things you think you want to do, check with yourself if you are doing it for the right reasons.
You can try reframing your goals to be driven by positivity and a meaningful reward.
E.g., You can reframe your weight loss goals this way:
You want to achieve weight loss because you want to get fitter;
You want to set the right example for your children;
You want to take good care of your body;
You want to be able to push your limits and see what you can achieve physically.
Reframing the situation in a way that motivates us through positivity will ensure that we keep with our efforts even when the going gets tough.
3. Things you want to do for the right reasons, but…
You might have the right intention and internal motivation. But, you might still be putting off things you genuinely want to accomplish.
Why so?
a. You are overwhelmed and don’t know where to begin.
Feeling overwhelmed and helpless when you venture into uncharted territories or set big goals is natural.
Say your goal is to start a successful blog. You might not know how and where to even begin. Everything will be new and daunting, from choosing a niche to writing articles and promoting them. You might even give up on the idea because you lose confidence in your ability to do it.
Solution:
- Get help. Talk to someone who has been in your shoes. This is the quickest way to get started and make progress.
- If there isn’t anyone to guide you personally, read about it or take a course. There is no dearth of information online.
- Work on only one problem at a time. No multitasking or pursuing more than one goal at a time.
- Break it down into smaller, actionable chunks of easily achievable microtasks.
You don’t have to have the whole thing figured out. Outline the first few steps you need to take, and you can figure out the rest as you go along. Just begin, and the momentum will build up.
For e.g: If you are struggling to start writing an article, your micro-tasks can be searching for the right image, downloading a few articles related to the topic, thinking of a headline, etc.
Micro tasks can be done in no time and give a sense of accomplishment. It lowers the stress of dealing with humungous projects.
b. You don’t truly believe you can do it.
Inspired by incredible runners, I have long fancied running a long-distance race. Despite attempting a running program several times, I have not managed to get past the 3k mark. It is not because I cannot run. It is because I don’t believe I can do it.
My brain scoffs at the idea of me being a runner. Even while planning my running schedule, the voice in my head would mockingly say, “Really?! You think you can run a marathon?”
Solution:
If you want to achieve anything, you must genuinely believe you can.
You should be able to see yourself running past that finish line — without the tiny voice in your head mocking you or your goals.
If the tiny voice creeps up, challenge it. Try to understand where it is coming from. If not, you will fail even before you begin.
Develop complete confidence in your abilities and grow your abilities that you need to make your dreams happen.
Remember, You can never be more than what you think you can be.
c. You are afraid of failure.
Fixing your eyes solely on the trophy can be counterproductive at times. When the potential reward and success are huge, you also feel the weight of potential failure.
You fear it will cost you big if you don’t make it. Or you are afraid of doing a shoddy job and not living up to expectations. You fear letting yourself and others down.
Solution:
Nothing is guaranteed in life, and success is no exception.
Instead of losing sleep trying to predict the future, try focussing your time and energy on what you have control over; your effort.
Perfection is a myth. Go easy on yourself and let go of the idea of being perfect. Do something, do anything. Just get started.
“If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing badly” G.K. Chesterton.
d. You are afraid of success.
“Fear of success? What a bizarre reason to procrastinate”. You might think.
But it will make sense if we understand where this fear stems from.
Our idea of self very much determines our thoughts and actions. You only do what you think “You” are capable of doing. “You” also have estimates about what you deserve to achieve.
This “You” is the image of yourself that you carry in your mind.
Unfortunately, there are so many limiting self-beliefs that we unknowingly carry with us and never challenge. You might dream of making it big but never truly believe you deserve that success.
And when there is a real possibility of achieving your goals, it conflicts with what you believe about yourself. So you freak out and give up on your dreams.
Solution:
Like how you can’t do more than what you believe you can, you can only achieve what you think you truly deserve.
You deserve to shine in the limelight.
You deserve everything you wish for and are willing to pay for.
Believe in it and don’t let anything, not your self-doubts especially, get in the way of getting things done.
e. You probably have an anxiety disorder.
Anxiety is a natural response to stressful situations, and the stress threshold varies between people. Since we are wired to avoid unpleasant feelings, we tend to avoid things that make us anxious.
So, Procrastination is a common coping strategy for people experiencing high anxiety levels.
Avoiding a stressful scenario improves the anxiety temporarily but compounds the feelings of stress long term. This feeds into the anxiety state, leading to a vicious cycle of avoidance and anxiety.
A telling behaviour is avoiding the simplest tasks (like doing the dishes) and then worrying about unfinished tasks. Beating yourself down for your behaviour and regretting wasting time follows.
Solution:
If this is you, I strongly urge you to seek help. You can learn to manage your stress and anxiety with healthy coping strategies, and I promise things will look up for you.
To sum up:
- Chronic Procrastination is often a symptom of a bigger problem.
- There are numerous reasons why you procrastinate. It is simply not laziness or lack of self-control that you don’t do what you wish or must do. (okay, maybe we are lazy and want to Netflix and chill sometimes)
- If you want to quit procrastinating, start by asking why — you alone know the answer.
- Solve the root of the problem, and you will be surprised how quickly your behaviour will change.
- If you procrastinate even the simplest things, it might indicate an anxiety disorder. Get help to learn healthy coping strategies and get back on track.
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