How to Fall in Love with Procrastination (Blog)

[Curtis2011]

Originally Posted by Steve Pavlina

Use this thread to discuss the following entry from Steve Pavlina's blog:

How to Fall in Love with Procrastination

That's a pretty long article, Steve. I think I'll read it later


The reason people procrastinate, is because they don't actually want to do whatever it is that they're procrastinating. For them, it represents emotional pain such as boredom, or the expenditure of time and energy, so they avoid it. It makes sense that to work on things that you actually care about would result in greater fulfillment in the long term.


I have been thinking about procrastination lately. I do think it's a bad thing, and getting your responsibilities taken care of early can save you a lot of emotional energy in the long run, since you often lose more energy by worrying about getting things done in the future, than the amount of energy it would require to just complete the task now.

Still, awhile back I came up with this phrase...

It's not procrastination; it's called outsourcing to the future

[Chris_1977]

Very nice and funny article. I love it!

[Wax Frog]

I'll click the link eventually

[ydnab40]

Oh wow. You mean that writing thing I've been doing since i was a teenager actually has a name? freewriting!!! Excellent. I thought it was just a "waste of time" thing I did.

Whenever I told anybody about it they would look at me as if I was an alien.

I'm off now to find some websites and forums where I can share something I've been doing for the past 30 odd years in private and in secret!!

[SheldonCooper]

What if… instead of resisting your impulse to procrastinate, you threw yourself into it more fully? What if you dove headfirst into your biggest procrastination impulses? Where might they lead you?

Been there done that.

Now I procrastinate about procrastinating. Fail.

[andreelerowes]

<grammar police>These two sentences should begin with "whose" (who's = who is): Who’s Agenda Are You Fulfilling? Who’s deadlines are you really working on?</grammar police>

Only letting you know, because I'm under the impression that you do care about these things. Do correct me if I'm wrong. =)

Thanks for the reminder of something I know very well on the inside but don't always allow myself to acknowledge. Someone wrote a similarly-themed article a while back; I don't think it's available online anymore. It was about Leonardo da Vinci and procrastination. Here's the quote I culled from it:

If there is one conclusion to be drawn from the life of Leonardo, it is that procrastination reveals the things at which we are most gifted — the things we truly want to do. Procrastination is a calling away from something that we do against our desires toward something that we do for pleasure, in that joyful state of self-forgetful inspiration that we call genius.

[roxyruby]

Originally Posted by James81

Wowie wow wow wow.

It's as if you've been actively reading my mind for the past several weeks (or my posts lol) and wrote that article directly to me.

You must be Houdini or some kind of wizard or something.

Seriously, that article resonated pretty strongly with me. Great post. Great perspective.

Damn! I was just going to say that! I think he must have an ability to make it sound like he's speaking directly to each person, that he has been reading their mind, and been looking through their forum posts and their life. Maybe he has! Are you like God Steve?

Maybe you could do what the worst procrastinators in the world frequently do. Start your own productivity blog.

I wondered if he was talking about me then

and also

Maybe you don’t need a college degree at all. Maybe you should dive right in and get to work doing what you love. What if the decision to earn a degree was just a fear-based delay tactic?

Cause guess what I've been thinking about the last couple of days. Getting a college degree. That I "should" get a college degree to be able to earn more money.

Thank-you for the AMAZING post steve. Procrastination has been a BIG part of my life. Laying motionless on bed with depression many, many times is certainly not productive.

Me and *someone* had a big argument the other day about doing chores. She wanted me to do lots of chores, like cleaning the floor twice a week etc. (and it's a big house) But I was like "Cleaning is a waste of life, I only do it when it needs to be done or if I get paid for it because I've got more important things to do at this period in my life"
But their perspective was "But so and so keeps their house perfect and so and so keeps their house perfect, what will they think!!"

Oh the liberation of actually just allowing and DOING procrastination all the time! Wow! What a concept!

I think "getting a college degree" and "studying for my driving license" etc etc etc are often just "safety" behaviors so people won't bother, abuse, and harass me because of doing what they consider "useless and bad" activities (what I do naturally as "procrastination").

[roxyruby]

Originally Posted by Zach Matley

Great article, Steve. I'll fall in love with procrastination later.

(No one has ever thought of a joke like that before. )

*Laughed out loud*

[roxyruby]

also procrastination: making the pictures that I talk about in my signature, I've literally made hundredsssssssss now

[bluemoon]

Maybe should have paid attention to one or two more English classes there. Should be "whose agenda" instead of "who's". Usually wouldn't grammar attack, but it happened twice in a row. Great article, though.

---former English/Medieval Lit major who didn't take the Chaucer snark personally at all

[nutella2]

Wow, this is so how my (joint) blog came about. We were both losing our minds in other projects that we were struggling to bring about. So we started blogging about all the movies we go to. And we have just hit our seventieth review after 8 months. And we love it
Thanks for the great post Steve.

[jayh]

Originally Posted by Elfwing

... I really, *really* like this idea. Thank you!

Take a look here: The book of beginnings for some inspiration.

[babuji]

Awesome! I loved it..

It's one of the few articles I didn't simply skim through and catch all the highlights.. Oddly enough I read every single word..

And yes.. I was procrastinating something else while reading this article..

Thanks!

[Savage]

Originally Posted by andreelerowes

<grammar police>These two sentences should begin with "whose" (who's = who is): Who’s Agenda Are You Fulfilling? Who’s deadlines are you really working on?</grammar police>

Only letting you know, because I'm under the impression that you do care about these things. Do correct me if I'm wrong. =)

Thanks for the reminder of something I know very well on the inside but don't always allow myself to acknowledge. Someone wrote a similarly-themed article a while back; I don't think it's available online anymore. It was about Leonardo da Vinci and procrastination. Here's the quote I culled from it:

Thanks... fixed 'em.

[alexmarc]

This is my first post. Just wanted to check in, let you all know I'm here, and tell you that I wrote an entire article on procrastination last May. At that time there were 4,160,000 entries on Google. Many of us put things off. We do so for various reasons. I put off the things I really don't like doing. If you've been calling yourself a procrastinator, stop it. Thoughts become things. It will be much more empowering to simply say that you put some things off. If there is a cost, a price to pay for putting it off - change your behavior and do what needs to be done. You can delegate, barter, or hire someone to do what you really don't like doing. If that's not possible - just do it - do it first thing in the morning, get it off your plate and out of your mind. It will only sit there and weigh heavily until it gets done. I know how delighted I am when I get whatever "it" is done. The thing I procrastinate about each month is that Montly Power Byte - my e-zine for Personal Power. I put it off until the very last minute, but when I sit down and get it done it feels so great. If you have a "real" problem, that problem getting some professional help would be a good idea.

[siryessir08]

Nice article, Steve.

I was just thinking about this last week when my mom told me that I have a huge problem with procrastination. I responded, "Really? I always get my work done though, and with quality. I just need to feel the pressure of the deadline to get started."

You took it a step further, Steve. Always insightful.

[DonnaBiz]

I just procrastinated something else by "fixing" a prior page that contains a reference to procrastination...and then I find Steve's latest article on...procrastination! Am I in some kind of endless loop?

Here's the quote I just added on my website:

When you feel enthusiasm to do something, it means you've lined up the Energy, and you are being inspired to take action from that point of alignment. When you don't feel like doing it, don't push yourself, because your effort is not worth it. But, when you line up the Energy, the feeling of procrastination goes away. --- Abraham

Excerpted from the workshop in San Rafael, CA on Sunday, July 31st, 2005 #252

I think I'm just lining up my energy.

[roxyruby]

I often think that chores are such a waste of time and life. That's probably my reason for procrastinating on them. And sometimes I try and think of how to get them done with less time & effort but can't think of anything!

One day people won't do chores and what they don't want to do anymore, it will be fully automated by technology.

[D Castle]

What the ****, Steve!?

That article hit me on an amazing level. It's so obvious, but also something I failed to see before. Very eloquently worded. Please keep knocking down and shaking social constructs.

[tamzdance]

Wow, Steve. Every single time I read your blog, it's about something that I am struggling with at that very exact point in time. (Except maybe the mango allergy one...hahaha!). Thanks for your brilliant ability to challenge, and in a lot of cases annihilate, old paradigms. THANK YOU THANK YOU!

[Rachelle]

Originally Posted by Curtis2011

(...)
The reason people procrastinate, is because they don't actually want to do whatever it is that they're procrastinating. For them, it represents emotional pain such as boredom, or the expenditure of time and energy, so they avoid it. It makes sense that to work on things that you actually care about would result in greater fulfillment in the long term.(...)

I think there are a variety of reasons that motivate or cause people to procrastinate. The reasons why we procrastinate are often a lot more complex than simply a matter of not wanting to do something.

For example, say you have a great idea for a book, or a story. You love the idea and you want to express it. You love writing. And yet, you find yourself procrastinating time and time again. Why? It's something you care about and something you actually want to do, yet you still put it off.

Sometimes certain goals seem overwhelming or daunting, so we put it off.

Sometimes it's simply a bad habit of prioritization. Procrastination can be a habit.

Sometimes it's easier to do the things that are comfortable and familiar than doing the things that challenge us and cause us to grow. ...even if deep down you really do *want* to grow... but it can be daunting, so you procrastinate.

Sometimes you might actually fear success. Since procrastination can sometimes lessen one's chance of success, those who are fearful of success may procrastinate to keep themselves stuck where they are, despite their deeper desire to push through that fear of the unknown and to be successful.

[inri]

Awesome article!! I so agree, when we begin to acknowledge our desire to procrastinate as valid feedback from our higher self, telling us that the action or task before us it is not the best course of present action, our urges towards procrastination actually begin to serve a valid purpose.

An urge to procrastinate on a particular task then becomes a signal of sorts that alerts us to the fact that there exists a better time for doing this task or even perhaps that this task can simply be eliminated from our 'to do' list.

I find that if a particular activity or task serves one of my highest intentions, then I naturally seem to reach a place and time where I will gravitate towards it with enthusiasm. I've played around with this enough to trust it. I don't push myself to do anything unless I'm feeling a certain resonance with it - as a result I believe I get much better results and even find myself enjoying certain tasks and activities that undertaken at a previous time, would have caused me extreme boredom or displeasure.

[andersonx]

It's a great article Steve, and it strikes me that represents a shift in your attitude from:

Outcome-control: Destination-consciousness, time-based, mental attitude to controlling reality into the specific outcome you think "should happen" (seems a little fear-based)

TO

Present-moment surrender: Surrendering to and embracing the present moment and all that it encompasses. Leaping out of logical, ordered, controlled "i should be doing" mentality, imposing a mental ideal of how you should behave, and just embracing what is.

Life is a continual cycle of creation and destruction, and it's a human tendency to always be fearfully clinging onto things. Fearfully clinging to our jobs, clinging to other people, clinging to any positive emotion that comes our way.

Sometimes you might as well surrender, and just allow everything you've been clinging to, to fall apart. It's a wonderful feeling, and after all - I feel that everything (good and bad, pleasant and suffering) occurs for our own growth - you can only learn from your experiences.

I've been allowing certain parts of my life, that I've been clinging to particular outcomes in, to fall apart. You know what? I've felt an incredibly decrease in the amount of fear and anxiety I've been storing up. Whatever the outcome of my actions, I'm still standing, still breathing, still able to feel joyful, still having loving friends and family - do I really need fearful attachments in my life, which I'm desparate to maintain? No.

-In addition, unpredictable outcomes are more exciting than predictable, controlled ones!

A lot of it depends upon the energy state in which your meeting reality with - i wouldn't reccomend letting things fall apart to someone who lazy, unhappy and disorganized. It might be a bad idea, and it might be better to try and get things under control!

But if you've been successful, you're joyful, happy, and your life seems like an never-ending adventure of growth and advancement - you may find empowering to step into the present moment and release the attachments and let go of everything you've worked for. Certainly that's what I'm experiencing to a certain extent. If anything so far, it's increased my financial abundance, but even I go bankrupt and get made homeless - I don't particularly care, I'll bounce back.

[Ekb]

Oooh, just had a revelation to add here:
Procrastination is like your paranoid intuition:
Procrastination happens when the path your following is leading to an inevitable dead end, the way to remedy this? Add something else, whether that is waiting, or inspiration from another source/sauce(?)
Just turned into a cooking metaphor:

Okay you are cooking some soup. Your following a recipe, but your tasting it, and it just doesn't taste quite right. You know deep down inside that it's gonna be wretched. You may not quite here this little voice and just make it nasty anyway. Or you could have this little instinct to add something else, like tomato sauce, but feel as though you are procrastinating to follow the recipe and make it like mumma used to. Or you could just let your instinct or auto-pilot take over and add the sauce and have some yummy soup at the end. Or just buy takeout.

[Cochonette]

I am seriously procrastinating on reading this article... in part because Steve's book is sitting beside me waiting to be read, and The Success Principles is in my backpack only half-read, and also... it doesn't sound like what I need right now. :P

[Savage]

Originally Posted by Cochonette

I am seriously procrastinating on reading this article... in part because Steve's book is sitting beside me waiting to be read, and The Success Principles is in my backpack only half-read, and also... it doesn't sound like what I need right now. :P

No worries. This particular article is very patient.

[Wilfred]

Although I definitely got the aha-reaction when reading this article, I should admit it's somehow conflicting with the ideas I have on discipline.

According to an earlier article of Steve "Self-discipline is the ability to get yourself to take action regardless of your emotional state". In that article Steve makes a strong case for the necessity of discipline.

What if your emotional state tells you to procrastinate? Which path should be followed? The path of 'taking action' by exerting discipline or the path of procrastination?

[Johnny Metal]

At first I felt very angry when I read the article, because for me the procrastination has become an addiction.

I know the procrastination could be useful when you're avoiding doing something you simply don't want doing, I remember being a teenager and procrastinating on going to school by doing the computer programming. AWESOME use of procrastination!

But nowadays I procrastinate on fulfilling my life purpose by obsessively lurking on Facebook or googling random keywords. I know I procrastinate because I have a burning desire to hang out face-to-face with conscious human beings, but Facebook simply cannot fill that need. I need to stop cold and go out and socialize with cool people, or else I'll develop OCD from so much mouse clicking.

If you're in the same boat, meaning you're addicted to procrastinating, I would suggest finding the need that the procrastination fills, then finding out the other ways to fill it instead of simply going with procrastination.


Off-topic: For some reason I don't have the "Edit avatar" button in my User CP, is there any requirement for having the avatar? Send me a pm if you know how to fix.

[ballhit2]

OK so I have been a master procrastinator for about 13 years now and wanted to share some of the results in non-wall-of-text form


No degree...but no debt.

No relationship which lasted more than 19 months...but no lack of diversity with women.

No challenging work...but no stressful breakdowns.



Phases of procrastination I've gone through:

1. Self-loathing
2. Recovery through hedonism
3. Strange living situation experimentation
4. Travel
5. Desire to learn how to forage and barter instead of getting a job


I am currently procrastinating developing useful skills to barter and learning how to forage for food. However, for the first time in 13 years, this particular (ha) episode of procrastinating seems like a bad idea...probably because what I could easily endure in my 20s seems more difficult to endure in my 30s.

An abundance of the problems we face stems from people viewing procrastinators as some form of vampire. They take from the energy of those they surround themselves with, ESPECIALLY if their friends are "motivated" or "on a life track." because these people typically view the epic procrastinator with a curious mixture of pity, jealousy, and rage.

"If you could only find something you loved doing...that must be so hard to live without direction like that"
"What do you DO all day? I have to go to work, and you just sit around and read and play, doesn't it get boring?"
"How dare you surf through life without a struggle! It's people like you who should be changing the world"

I sum this with a quote from the late great George Carlin:

“What's all this stuff about motivation? I say, if you need motivation, you probably need more than motivation. You probably need chemical intervention or brain surgery. Actually, if you ask me, this country could do with a little less motivation. The people who are causing all the trouble seem highly motivated to me.”

[inri]

I think the most important thing is to stop beating yourself up when you find yourself procrastinating. Treating ourselves harshly is one of the most damaging things we can do imo.

When we beat ourselves up over perceived failings, we seem to become even more entrenched within them and magnetized towards the activities we perceive as contributing to them. When this happens, we engage in the activity without consciousness...almost as a reflexive action.

By accepting our desire to procrastinate when it arises and 'honoring' it (looking behind the feeling to ask questions about it and acting accordingly), I believe we may actually find ourselves procrastinating less, as when we do put off a task or activity, we'll be doing it consciously and because it truly feels like the right thing to do in that moment.