Overcoming Procrastination

Procrastination is knowing that you should be doing something, wanting to do that something, and either not being able to make a start or not being able to finish. Classic procrastination is a psychological response to the fear of being criticised. For many people that fear is so overwhelming, so terrifying, that they would rather put off doing it than dare to produce something that might be told is not be good enough.

Distraction Procrastination is where you know how to do something, can do it, but are constantly distracted by unnecessary and self indulgent activities. Surfing the Internet, checking online auctions, reading the news and so on all seem to be more important right now, more attractive than doing all the important things that you are supposed to be doing. Its source is a general anxiety about the individual not being good enough.

Pervasive Procrastination is the feeling of 'why bother' that applies to everything. This is typically putting off exercise, can't be bothered cooking, don't want to go out, rather just slump in front of the television. This does not apply to one specific activity, but to all activities. It tends to get worse over time. This is usually the result of undiagnosed depression, or dysthymia. It can be treated effectively and quickly. It is not really procrastination, it reflects a loss of interest in life generally.

 

RATIONALE

Classic Procrastination is about fear. It is a fear of criticism, disapproval, not being good enough, of failing to measure up, maybe having to tell someone you have failed. It usually has roots in childhood, when a parent, a teacher, somebody, told you you weren't good enough, that nothing you did was good enough, would ever be good enough, and every time you did something, you were hoping for praise and what you got was ridiculed, rejected, made to feel stupid and unwanted. And your mind hated it. You wanted to run away, to hide, to stop the horrible words. Your mind will do anything to avoid that feeling again.

So the mind finds ways for you never to be in that situation again.

If you never finish it, or never start it, you can't be criticised, can you? And while the deadline is far away, there is no problem, but as the deadline approaches, the time of judgment approaches, and the fear of the pain of criticism grows until it is unbearable.

 

Distraction procrastination is about rewards. There is instant gratification available from reading the news, or checking emails or other external stimulus. There is no gratification from doing the ordinary boring routine jobs you are paid to do. What happens is the mind fixes on the dull stuff and can't find anything interesting in it anymore, and so imagines it to be even more dull. Especially in comparison to what might be happening out in the real world. So you go seeking stimulation and very soon have trained yourself into a behaviour pattern that is hard to shift.

 

PROCEDURE

All these mechanisms are based on projected fear, imagined fear, the memory of fear, not real fear. The cure is to deal with that fear, to actually look at it, to focus on it, to imagine a different outcome, to get your mind to deal with the original situation and change how it makes you feel.

The behavioural psychology way to deal with it is to do the thing you fear. Like the slogan says - Just do it. And every time you do it, it will never be as bad as your mind has built it up to be, and after a few repetitions, the fear will abate and the procrastination will be gone. However, the problem may be intermittent rather than chronic, and some people cannot even get to the starting line, never mind get past it.

Hypnotherapy is very effective for the distraction type of procrastination. A direct suggestion script is used to reduce the attraction of the external time wasters, and to increase personal motivation. It enables the subconscious connection between time and money, and reframes the routine jobs as being rewarding and stimulating and installs better work habits.

Cognitive therapy offers another way of dealing with it. Whatever the symptoms, the basic therapy is to find and correct the underlying fear. This is normally done in one or more sessions, in which the person becomes aware of how their mind is representing their problem, and then changes that representation. Changing how the mind represents the problem destroys what is causing the problem. And the procrastination is gone.

 

RESULTS

Procrastination can be difficult to eradicate but it can be fixed and will eventually disappear. How long it takes depends on its type. But it won't get better unless you do something about it now, will it? What are you waiting for?

 

 

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