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Over the last 30 years, our understanding of procrastination has evolved amidst a flurry of scientific and psychological research. Procrastinators are no longer consigned to the ‘lazy’ scrap heap, nor are they labeled poor time managers.
Researchers now recognize that procrastination is far more complicated than it appears on the surface. Real procrastination is a complex brew of ineffective emotion regulation. Of course, the issue is compounded by other behaviors and traits, such as perfectionism, a lack of confidence, anxiety, and a flawed concept of time. But at its heart sits a struggle to control how we respond emotionally to stressful situations.
Thus, procrastination is a symptom and not a cause.
The inability to regulate emotions effectively is a powerful and affecting behavior. Procrastinators delay completing tasks even though they know it’s going to make them feel bad.
What’s Really at The Heart of My Procrastination? Am I Lazy?
Primarily, we avoid tasks because we do not believe that we will enjoy completing them, we are scared that we might fail, and we have an innate desire to avoid feeling unhappy. Complex tasks can phase procrastinators – they don’t know where to start, so it’s easier not to start at all. If we’re not in the right mood or the right frame of mind, we don’t feel like doing something tricky that might challenge us.
Procrastinators are conquered by their emotions; they dictate the way they behave. Even though they know their task avoidance will lead to feelings of shame and guilt, they cannot take charge of their emotions and face their fears head-on. Instead, they delay and put things off despite knowing that they will be in a worse position.
Procrastination is often incorrectly labeled as laziness. The irony is that procrastinators rarely sit around doing nothing; on the contrary, they are usually very busy people. It is an active process, where a choice is made to do something else instead of the task at hand. Comparatively, laziness is, well, just that – plain lazy and apathetic.
From the outside, you could be forgiven for thinking that procrastination is illogical. How is it that people cannot get things done even though they know that they are going to suffer? It just makes no sense!
Well, Timothy Pychyl, of Carleton University, in Canada explains what many of his research subjects say:
“If you speak to people, they’ll tell you that it doesn’t feel voluntary: “I feel like I have no control over it.” For some people, it feels totally involuntary, like they can’t help themselves.”
It’s About Emotion Management – Not Time Management
While a poor concept of time can be a factor, procrastination boils down to the inability to manage stress and distress. Unable to regulate and control their emotions, procrastinators find it easier to avoid the source of their discomfort even though they know it will make them feel bad.
Joseph Ferrari, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology at DePaul University Chicago, states:
“It really has nothing to do with time-management,” he says. “As I tell people, to tell the chronic procrastinator to ‘just do it’ would be like saying to a clinically depressed person, ‘cheer up’.”
As a coping mechanism, procrastination is all about avoidance. The behavior is self-defeating because it only benefits the present-self in the here and now. The reward is immediate; we banish the negative emotions associated with the task – fear, boredom, irritation, resentment. But the job itself remains, lurking and untouched like a dark cloud.
Our selfish present-self leaves our future-self to deal with the task and the additional emotions and pressure that come with it: stress, increased time pressure, and self-loathing caused by the earlier unnecessary avoidance.
So, why does the present-self set up the future-self in this way?
Present Self and Future Self
Research has shown that we rely on the present-self to predict how we will feel in the future. This is known as affective forecasting. The term was coined in the 1990s by psychologists Daniel Gilbert and Timothy Wilson. They discovered that people are often blinded and overwhelmed by feelings in the present moment to such an extent that they cannot accurately foresee how they will feel in the future.
For Example:
Affective forecasting is a powerful and potent phenomenon. Have you ever bought a luxury item, perhaps a beautiful car or a designer handbag, confident that this will change your life by bringing you never-ending joy? You get caught up in the moment. A heady blast of dopamine gives you a rush and a sense of instant gratification. The reality, however, is much less exciting. Once you get it home, it’s surprising how fast the joy of owning the handbag or the car wears off.
Back in the land procrastination, the behavior is the same. Procrastinators soothe the present-self by convincing themselves that the future-self will be better equipped to take action, feel better, be in a better frame of mind, and be more capable of completing the task. The relief is instant. When we relieve ourselves of the unpleasant stress and do something more enjoyable, we feel better. We then consider ‘tomorrow’ through this lens of positivity and – ta-dah! –it makes perfect sense to start the diet tomorrow.
In the words of Fuschia Sirois of Bishop’s University, in Canada:
“The future self becomes the beast of burden for procrastination.”
Procrastinators seldom learn from their mistakes. Instead, they are blinded repeatedly by the instant gratification that comes with stalling. Also, hyperbolic discounting, the tendency of people to choose short-term smaller rewards over a long-term larger reward, seals the deal. This is why surfing Facebook is always a better option than emptying your Inbox.
Procrastination = A Lack of Self-Regulation Skills
This misplaced coping mechanism is a vicious cycle:
- The procrastinator delays the task: “I’ll do it tomorrow!”
- The procrastinator feels terrible: “God! I’m so useless!”
- The procrastinator beats themselves up: “I really should do it now!”
- The procrastinator lets themselves off the hook: “But I’m not in the right frame of mind to do it now! Whatever I produce will be terrible!”
- And so, it repeats.
Psychologists attribute this inability to take action to weak self-regulatory skills. The procrastinator cannot bring themself to do what they know they need to, and this inability to regulate, address, and deal with emotions is at the heart of the problem. Procrastinators cannot tolerate aversive emotions – this means that they can’t deal with unpleasant emotions like resentment, fear, discomfort, or boredom.
The inability to deal with aversive emotions may manifest in one of two ways in a procrastinator’s life. By avoiding the task, the procrastinator:
- actively seeks pleasure and enjoyment instead, or
- looks to side-step dealing with their fear of failure and/or perfectionism.
For some, the avoidance may be a combination of both.
A Quick Note on Fear and Perfectionsim
We cannot underestimate the power of fear and perfectionism in the life of a procrastinator. Often people are so preoccupied with what others think of them that it’s easier to dodge judgment by avoiding the task. Others cannot tolerate the idea of not doing a job to an exacting standard and would rather not do it all. For some, the notion of ‘working under pressure’ is a convenient way to soothe their procrastination anxiety. However, research indicates that the short burst of elation from achieving against the odds is misleading.
For some, procrastination can signify a more complex underlying issue such as ADHD, OCD, depression, and chronic stress. If your procrastination brings severe consequences in your life, it’s essential to seek help from an appropriate professional.
What Action Can I Take To Resolve My Procrastination?
No doubt about it, procrastination can have a significant impact throughout our lives. However, it is not a terminal condition, and we can tackle it; change is possible.
To effectively address the problem, chronic procrastinators need to explore strategies that strengthen their self-control. We need to develop the cognitive processes involved in executive functioning so that the present, adult self takes control.
It’s essential to recognize that there is a positive intention behind every ‘bad’ behavior. Humans, by nature, are designed to move towards pleasure and away from pain. It’s a fairly simplistic approach to survival. By procrastinating, the unconscious mind is trying to protect us from facing these aversive emotions. We engage in the battle, beating ourselves up emotionally, telling ourselves that we are worthless, which causes distress and anxiety.
This self-admonishment is not helpful. We make ourselves feel worse. Also, research has shown that procrastinators are, in the main, less able to demonstrate self-compassion and forgiveness towards themselves. To begin the road to recovery, we need to deepen our understanding of why, exactly, we procrastinate and start to forgive ourselves for doing so.
Further reading from The Rediscovery of Me
What Is Procrastination? Why Can’t I Get Things Done?
Why Beating Procrastination is Great for Your Health
