27 September 2023

Self sabotage: The damage from procrastinating and how to stop

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Olivia Remes* says science has proved that procrastination is not only harmful to the projects for which an individual is responsible — it can also lead to depression.


Research shows that our inclination to delay or postpone things is often tied to having low self-belief and can lead to depression.

Procrastination derives from the Latin word procrastinare, which means ‘deferred until tomorrow’.

It’s irrational human behaviour because even though we know it’s in our best interest to act now, we delay unnecessarily.

A lot of the time, procrastination is a habit that occurs without us even realising.

Habits are important to be aware of so that we can break free from them, otherwise the consequences can be very difficult to bear.

Research shows that procrastination is also tied to being easily distracted, impulsive, and having low self-belief in the ability to follow through.

There are steps you can take — based on science — to overcome procrastination and get closer to the life you want.

Learn to tolerate some initial discomfort

Many times, before we start to work on a task, we feel bored or a have a sense of dread.

We want to get away from these uncomfortable feelings and the task that’s causing them.

When people begin to procrastinate on a regular basis, they choose instant gratification over distant rewards and future goals.

Delaying in order to feel good can have harmful consequences in the long term, because it can lead to regret, suffering and even mental illness.

If we want to overcome procrastination, instead of fleeing from uncomfortable feelings, sit with them for a bit.

Identify the negative emotions that are arising in you as you prepare to work and just continue with your task.

Anything unpleasant you’re feeling initially is temporary and dissipates.

The more you learn to tolerate this transient discomfort, the more your self-control builds and you start to see yourself differently.

Choose the emotion you want to focus on

Even though we might be feeling annoyed or stressed when we sit down to work on a task, there are other emotions that we’re experiencing.

We might have a desire to learn something new and become more proficient at something or get promoted. No matter how small this desire is, it’s still there.

We all have an inner landscape of emotions that we’re feeling at any given time, and we can choose which emotion from this inner landscape we want to focus on.

So instead of thinking how much we loathe beginning a project, we might tap into the wish to enrich ourselves mentally or professionally.

This not only makes it easier to engage, but it makes doing the work more meaningful.

Do it badly

A sure-fire way to overcome procrastination and become more motivated is to do it badly.

You might feel paralysed to start working on something because you think it needs to be done perfectly, or that you can’t begin because you’re not capable enough.

Instead of waiting until you’re better prepared or feel like it, just dive right in.

This not only applies to work, but anytime you have to make a decision in life.

Doing it badly allows you to take action and makes it much easier to follow through, and you can always refine later.

If you use this motto, you’ll start to notice that the aversion you’re feeling towards tasks changes into excitement and ease.

Act now and motivation will follow

At the heart of procrastination is the thinking that tomorrow, we will feel like it more.

Studies show that we’re not very good at predicting how we will feel in the future.

You decide to give up caffeine for example, but before you do this, you treat yourself one last time.

Right after you’ve had your fix, you think that it won’t be so hard to stick to your plan, but as soon as temptation hits, you’re back to where you started.

When it comes to procrastination, we’re happy now because we’ve put off doing something, so we believe that these positive emotions will also be there tomorrow.

This is never the case.

Knowing that we’re unable to predict or anticipate our emotions makes it easier to act now, because it can allow you to start on a task even though you’re not motivated.

When you start to do this, it is also when momentum builds.

When momentum builds, the seed of motivation begins to sprout.

Cut the day-dreaming

If you want to reduce the amount of time you spend procrastinating, cut back on mind-wandering and day-dreaming.

Nearly a third to half of our thoughts during the day don’t have anything to do with the task in front of us.

We spend much of our time thinking about something else or mindlessly scrolling through social media feeds.

Research shows that mind-wandering can disrupt your performance and impacts reading comprehension.

It shifts your attention away from what you’re doing in that instant, and this might make it harder to get back to your to-do list.

It’s also addictive — the more you day-dream, the harder it becomes to control. It’s even tied to depression.

Often when we day-dream, we direct our attention towards the self, unrealised goals, or think about an idealised self that doesn’t match up to how we are now.

This leads to rumination, which can become fertile ground for depression.

The antidote to this is to focus on the present moment — the task at hand or whatever you’re doing.

This is the essence of mindfulness and it’s the essence of living.

*Olivia Remes is a mental health researcher at the University of Cambridge.

This article was originally published at Vogue.co.uk

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