In our last few articles, we have discussed how to set goals and make progress on those goals. How many of you have read along and nodded your head to some good ideas and maybe even said, “That might work for me?” Or maybe, “Wow I’m going to try that.” Now, how many of you have really taken action? Maybe you just put it off until tomorrow. Today we talk about procrastination. There are 6 Powerful Procrastinator Patterns – which one are you?
Procrastination is unnecessarily postponing decisions or actions. A person is procrastinating when they delay doing something until just before it becomes critical or just before the deadline.
A survey in 2015 found that, on average, we each lose over 55 days per year procrastinating, wasting around 218 minutes every day doing unimportant things.
Everyone waits until the last minute sometimes. However, many procrastinators pay a significant price, from poor job performance to stress, financial problems, and relationship conflicts. Fortunately, just as anyone can endlessly delay, anyone can learn how to stop. There are different styles of procrastination. Learning your procrastination style might make it easier to conquer your procrastination and finish your tasks.
There are 6 Powerful Procrastinator Patterns divided among two general categories of procrastinators: Passive and Active. Most of us are in the Passive category.
Passive Procrastinators
The Avoider
You are the person that avoids starting the project. Maybe you avoid thinking about it because you are a perfectionist and are afraid to start the task at hand. Perhaps you worry so much about doing the project right that you’d rather do nothing than risk screwing up.
You should just begin. You don’t have to write to whole book. Work on a sentence or two; just spend five minutes. Then focus on the worst or most challenging part first. Try to break down your tasks into smaller sub-tasks and make realistic calculations. This will give you a sense of achievement and help you build momentum.
Shiny Ball
You are the person that sees and or looks for other things that catch their interest. It’s possible you start your project and then your mind wanders and you don’t finish the project, instead you start a new one. Or you get distracted by a person, or a thought that flitters through your mind and you reach for your phone.
You should (a) Make the distracting new things seem less appealing, or (b) make the work at hand seem more appealing. Put your phone away, check emails at limited intervals and employ the Pomodoro Technique. The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method based on 25-minute stretches of focused work broken by five-minute breaks. Longer breaks, typically 15 to 30 minutes, come up after four consecutive work intervals. Each work interval is called a Pomodoro.
The Planner-Planner
You are the one that jumps on task and then begins to plan. Then re-plan. Do you dream of the perfect way to do this project and do it well? You are someone who enjoys making the ideal plan more than taking action. You are highly creative and hard- working but find it hard to actually finish a task.
You should keep yourself from getting carried away by your endless imagination and second-guessing, get your feet back on the ground by setting specific (and achievable) goals with action steps for each day. Then break the goal down into small actionable tasks.
The Pressure Gauge
You are a believer of “I work well under pressure.” By procrastinating, you force yourself to be behind schedule and consequently have less time to tackle a task. Maybe because it forces you to concentrate. Or because you have so little time you can’t hold out for perfection. You are the optimist believing you know exactly how long something will take, leaving no room for something going wrong. Deadlines for you are exciting, but that pressure also causes stress.
You should get your priorities straight. It will help keep your stress level down and put you in control. Urgent tasks have precedent over important tasks. Important tasks come before unimportant tasks. You only have so much time and energy. Don’t waste it on things that don’t matter.
The Bees
You are the Un-Busy Bee if you have trouble prioritizing tasks because you have too many of them to choose from. Some of your tasks seem unworthy of your talent. You don’t know how to choose so you invoke “I’m just so busy” so you can postpone making any decisions.
You are the Busy Bee if you fill up your calendar and then find yourself overwhelmed. Though some of the busiest people get the most done, your busy bee procrastination may be a way to avoid something you should do, but don’t want to do.
You should take a moment of to ask yourself what you are avoiding and tackle it. Next, clear your decks. Then do one thing at a time rather than trying to tackle multiple tasks simultaneously. Make a list of each day’s workload and responsibilities and an allotted time frame for each. Check out some time management and work list apps for ideas.
Active Procrastinators
A second type of delay known as active procrastination might actually be a good thing.
Processor
You are a Processor or an Active Procrastinator if you choose to complete all the little, annoying to-do list tasks first. Your hope is that completing less essential work will free up time for more important work later on. You work to clear a path.
Active procrastination is your process to delay important work in favor of other important work that adds to the overall well-being of a project. This type of procrastination works for your goals rather than against them. For you, going through lessor activities gives your brain a chance to process and unconsciously work on the important work. It gives you more time to explore possibilities and find creative and or exciting ways to do your task. You are prepared to accept good ideas that can happen at the last minute. You enjoy and prefer working under pressure. You meet deadlines and are most often satisfied with a job well done.
You should not be afraid of this process. If you are successful and it does not have any actual adverse effects on your health, or your accomplishments.
Waiting to the last minute, for the Active Procrastinator, means being single-minded and dedicated to that deadline. Keep in mind that while waiting to the last minute may be motivating, it allows no time for the unknowns. Illness, mechanical or electronic breakdowns, or anything you depend on that is out of your control.
6 Powerful Procrastinator Patterns Conclusion
Whether your mantra is:
“Procrastination is not the problem, it’s the solution.” – Ellen Degeneres
OR
“I’m not a procrastinator. I’m just extremely productive at unimportant things.” – Elephantontheroad
REMEMBER
Action is the solution to procrastination.
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