Personal Development for Smart People Forums - View Single Post - Can I learn to stop Procrastinating? I dont think so

JWebb38222 · 07-04-2009, 04:33 PM

I read that people who have lost the center of the brain that regulates emotion are also incapable of making decisions, even decisions such as whether to put their shoes on or not. It appears that emotions are necessary to tip the balance towards one decision or another.

If you are deciding to procrastinate on a project you think you should do, it's because your emotions about the project are not congruent with the logic of why you should do it. It could be fears, such as fear of success, fear of rejection, or fear of failure. It could be that part of you wants to take a break even though you don't think you need one. Or, maybe the task is too monumental and deep down you'd rather not do it.

One of the most rewarding books I've ever read was Self-Discipline in 10 Days by Theodore Bryant, MSW. It's expensive at about $30 dollars but, take my word for it, it's worth more than a goose that lays golden eggs.

It's a program that you go through where you identify a part of you he calls Hyde, the funloving defiant emotional part of you, the part that sees far enough ahead and remembers how things felt in the past. You work through your various fears and basically make deals with Hyde in order to get his/her cooperation. I know it sounds cooky but it absolutely makes sense and works. It other words, you're working towards congruency within your own mind. You may even discover that, based on what Hyde wants, you need to not do the project even more than you need to do it.

It helped me soul search to discover that there is a bit of fear of success within me when it comes to dieting. I'm leery of the thought of not having the foods I enjoy and what life would be like having to maintain a diet I don't even like. I'm still working through that one but it's helped me tremendously towards developing good productivity habits that I don't dread to follow. I discovered that I used to procrastinate because I didn't give myself enough time in the day for leizure. I was pushing myself too hard. My solution is to let off the pedal and train up my tolerance for more work slowly, over a period of time. I give myself more time for leizure now but it's structured and under my control.

07-04-2009, 04:33 PM	#28 (permalink)
JWebb38222 Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 8	Emotion and procrastination. I read that people who have lost the center of the brain that regulates emotion are also incapable of making decisions, even decisions such as whether to put their shoes on or not. It appears that emotions are necessary to tip the balance towards one decision or another. If you are deciding to procrastinate on a project you think you should do, it's because your emotions about the project are not congruent with the logic of why you should do it. It could be fears, such as fear of success, fear of rejection, or fear of failure. It could be that part of you wants to take a break even though you don't think you need one. Or, maybe the task is too monumental and deep down you'd rather not do it. One of the most rewarding books I've ever read was Self-Discipline in 10 Days by Theodore Bryant, MSW. It's expensive at about $30 dollars but, take my word for it, it's worth more than a goose that lays golden eggs. It's a program that you go through where you identify a part of you he calls Hyde, the funloving defiant emotional part of you, the part that sees far enough ahead and remembers how things felt in the past. You work through your various fears and basically make deals with Hyde in order to get his/her cooperation. I know it sounds cooky but it absolutely makes sense and works. It other words, you're working towards congruency within your own mind. You may even discover that, based on what Hyde wants, you need to not do the project even more than you need to do it. It helped me soul search to discover that there is a bit of fear of success within me when it comes to dieting. I'm leery of the thought of not having the foods I enjoy and what life would be like having to maintain a diet I don't even like. I'm still working through that one but it's helped me tremendously towards developing good productivity habits that I don't dread to follow. I discovered that I used to procrastinate because I didn't give myself enough time in the day for leizure. I was pushing myself too hard. My solution is to let off the pedal and train up my tolerance for more work slowly, over a period of time. I give myself more time for leizure now but it's structured and under my control.