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If you are doing anything but important work or studying for an exam, this is procrastination. We figured out how to deal with this together with science journalist Asya Kazantseva
How does procrastination relate to self-control?
Self-control is one of the main determinants of success in life. It is as important as a developed intellect. As a rule, people who have self-control achieve significantly greater success in any area that they decide to take on. The good news is that self-control can be developed: and if a person has managed to pull himself together and overcome himself at least once, then in the future it may become easier for him to solve tasks that require increased concentration.
What affects the level of self-control
The level of self-control depends, among other things, on lifestyle. If a person eats well, sleeps well and moves a lot, the brain has the resources to focus and overcome life’s obstacles.
Cultural factors also have an impact. For example, if society has strict rules of etiquette, then, having become accustomed to controlling oneself even at the dinner table, a person copes better with serious work tasks that require concentration. It may even contribute to the economic prosperity of the society.
The tendency to put off important, from your point of view, things for later is called procrastination. At the same time, the situation when a person simply lies on the couch instead of writing a diploma cannot be called procrastination. With procrastination, an important task is necessarily replaced by some non-urgent one – or even one that could not be done at all.
There is an opinion that procrastination is always a sign of internal conflict. One part of the personality is sure that you should now be doing something specific, for example, taking an occupational safety test. At the same time, there is some other part of your personality that chooses to do something completely different at the same time: aimlessly checking mail or washing dishes. This is due to the fact that subconsciously you want to feel relief. Doing a small deed gives you a feeling of “instant reward”, and for a while it becomes easier. In the long run, this conflict of motivations causes a lot of stress, which becomes an additional factor for procrastination.
Unlike procrastination, short-term idleness may be necessary for creative tasks or learning. The time when the brain is not busy with anything is important for the formation of long-term memories. The ideal ways to distract yourself are sleep or a short walk in the fresh air.
Eventually, procrastination can lead to real health problems. People who constantly live in “burning deadline” mode may sacrifice sleep or start using psychoactive substances in order to still have time to get the job done at the last moment.
Procrastination doesn’t come alone
Procrastination is caused by negative emotions associated with a task that you are putting off, such as boredom. If you look at the problem even deeper, it turns out that the matter is in your own perception of yourself. The procrastinator may feel anxious about not being qualified enough for the task at hand. A person does not like anything, he is dissatisfied with himself, does not feel the need for self-actualization and therefore cannot concentrate on business.
If you look at the results of questionnaires that assess a person’s tendency to procrastinate, you can see a correlation with other negative personality traits, such as a high level of neuroticism. Also, procrastinators are characterized by automatic thoughts, when unconscious negative internal beliefs about their personality “slip” in their heads.
It is wrong to think that procrastination is characteristic of some “lazy” or “unsuccessful” people. Often procrastination goes hand in hand with impostor syndrome, which even high-profile but insecure experts can suffer from.
When Not to Fight Procrastination
Different tasks cause different levels of procrastination. A mild form of loss of self-control can be corrected with competent time management. But if procrastination reaches incredible proportions, it is worth considering that perhaps you are not doing your job. Sometimes it’s easier to change jobs or universities and stop torturing yourself.
On the other hand, there are people in whom almost any business causes great resistance – in this case it is better to figure out why this is happening, together with a psychotherapist.
How to deal with procrastination
There are several ways to deal with procrastination locally: