The person who leaves everything at the last moment. The disease of tomorrow. The habit of procrastinating until later is dangerous. From complex to simple

Accustomed to constantly postponing important tasks, and at work you drink tea all day and sit on Facebook? Don't worry, it's not your fault. You're just sick. Procrastination. Go to sick leave.

Alexey Dubkov Alexey Karaulov

So, you checked your mail for the hundredth time, folded your coffee, made solitaire, smoked the news. It would seem that it was then to work. But you unexpectedly came across an article on how to stop shirking and start working - this is our article. So be it, read it, and then you will finish everything quickly, quickly!

Let's say right away: despite the title, we are not talking about all laziness, but only about one of its varieties, which has recently become very widespread and, according to a number of scientists, has taken the form of neurosis. We're talking about procrastination - the habit of putting off important things over and over again in favor of pleasant, harmless, but completely unnecessary activities. If this is the first time you hear such a term, but are already ready to exclaim: “So this is why I spend hours at work playing, kicking and bouncing around! I have a terrible disease - procrastination! " - do not rush. Wait at least until the end of the article. After reading, you may be enriched with a few more terms, excuses and reasons to feel sorry for yourself.

Pro-beauty ... what?

The history of the phenomenon goes back millennia. Even the ancient Egyptians wrote about the endless postponing of things for later (well, as they wrote, they were gouged out on the walls). Moreover, they had two hieroglyphs to denote such a delay: with negative consequences- "Fool that pulled!" and with positive ones - "Thank God I didn’t do it, only I would have wasted my time!" He also wrote about a special kind of laziness in 800 BC. e. Greek poet Gedroid. Since there are no academic translations of his poems, be content with our version: "A husband who has postponed work for a long time, with poverty on the arm, walks further through life." (Glorious is the editor who made such a translation!)

The term "procrastination" itself appeared already in Ancient rome as a result of the addition of two words: the preposition pro ("towards, towards, forward") and crastinus ("tomorrow"). The word is found in the writings of historians, and in a positive context. Procrastination is the talent of wise politicians and military leaders who do not make hasty decisions, do not enter into conflict and are not in a hurry to pay a prostitute in the hope that the lupanarium will catch fire and it will be possible to escape on the sly.

In modern history, the term did not appear until 1682, in a sermon by the Reverend Anthony Walker. As usual for all the saints, pondering what else to take up against, the Englishman Walker fished out procrastination into the light of day and declared it a sin. The word stuck, in the 18th century it got into print and stuck to the slogans of the industrial revolution in the spirit of "The factories are standing, there are only procrastinators around." Since then, laziness and the compromised Latin term have never parted.

What is the difference?

More precisely, why a separate word at all? Why is it impossible to say "laziness", "simple", "negligence"? To understand the difference, just read the modern definition of procrastination. It was formulated by Professor J.R. Ferrari, head of the Procrastination Research Group (PRG) at Carlton University in Ottawa:

Procrastination is
1) the habit of procrastinating,
2) unconditionally perceived as important,
3) gradually becoming a neurotic pattern of behavior and
4) causing persistent frustration or guilt in the procrastinator.

Do not be in a hurry to envy the professor and think that he gave birth to this definition, sitting in his office and throwing darts into the coffee maker. His group has done significant work in the fields of neuroscience, psychology and statistics. Again, if procrastination is their main occupation, they probably do their best to delay it and work hard.

Ferrari emphasizes that mindfulness is the most important sign of procrastination. It is not enough to disrupt the deadlines and do the work badly - this can be any cretin who overestimated his strength or did not understand the problem. It is also necessary to realize until the last moment that you are deliberately doing nonsense, although you could have worked.

7 facts about procrastination

Lovingly collected by Prof. Ferrari's subordinates over the years.

Fact number 1

Let's start with almost a compliment - however, it will be the only one for the entire article, so do not read it all at once, leave a little for the morning. So, according to PRG, procrastinators in general are much more optimistic ordinary people ... Moreover, as tests have shown, optimism does not prevent them from calculating their strength and time. Fearlessness and belief in miracles concern only the assessment of the risks associated with failure to do the job.

Fact number 2

Procrastinators are not born. It's upbringing to blame. Although there is still a lot that is unclear. One thing Ferrari knows for sure: an incredible number of his charges grew up in families with an authoritarian type of upbringing (see our article ""). A tough, control-obsessed parent pushes the child to avoid any independent activity, prevents him from hearing his desires. The child does only what he is told. Worse, the latent hatred of prohibitions (“And don’t you dare to climb on the closet while I hide my naked aunt in it from my mother!”) Makes an adult procrastinator surround himself with people who forgive him for any punctures. And this, of course, only aggravates his conniving attitude towards himself.

Fact number 3

Procrastinators, on average, drink more than their peers and peers. They do this, firstly, for the sake of feeling, as Venichka Erofeev wrote, "nothing-not-immersion." Second, procrastination is often the result of poor self-control. Excessive drinking is another special case of this problem.

Fact number 4

The most common form of self-deception, which procrastinators resort to, "I can only work under pressure." The second most popular - "I will do it tomorrow with fresh strength." At the same time, Ferrari's cunning tests prove that no noticeable increase in productivity occurs - neither after a long rest, nor in an emergency.

Fact number 5

PRG patients are not just playing for time. They are actively looking for distraction cases that would help them not do what they need to do. They are looking for two criteria: a) the opportunity to constantly return to business; b) the inability to lose and screw up. The most popular distractor is mail checking.

Fact number 6

In the ranks of procrastinators, there is an abnormally high percentage of people in poor health. Resistance to colds is half that in a group of ordinary people, vulnerability to gastroinfections is three times higher.

Fact number 7

Sometimes, for more or less random reasons (an unprecedented external stimulus, personal choice, a promise to a loved one who threatens you with an iron) procrastinator can change completely... True, effective, consciously productive behavior takes away more physical strength from him than from an ordinary person. The result is anxiety, frustration, drowsiness; ultimately - a return to the familiar pattern.

How it works

According to another scientist, P. Steele, who not only wrote a series of books "The Procrastination Formula", but also reads mini-lectures on YouTube ( Procrastinus channel), the phenomenon is explained quite simply.

The fact is that your desires are controlled not by a little squirrel that lives in your nose (although we understand that this contradicts all your life experience), but two areas of the brain.

The first, limbic, of which the pleasure center is also part, is capable of generating strong stimuli: hunger, thirst for sex, fear, an irresistible desire to watch again on YouTube. It is quite difficult to resist the signals of this system, it never sleeps, is capable of suppressing the voice of reason and, most importantly, does not understand what time is. Limbic desires cannot be long-term. It is a machine for making quick demands and short-term pleasures. “Hey, well! - as if a voice in your head tells you. - Just think, one game of table football! This is five minutes, and you will have the whole evening for the article. But how much fun! " The problem is that this system immediately forgets that it was fun (there is no concept of time for it) - and requires a new fast high.

On the other hand, desires can also be born in the prefrontal areas of the cerebral cortex. Here a time horizon already arises, planning questions arise ...

But the trouble is, even in people with the most tortuous and hardened bark, these zones sooner or later get tired. Moreover, fatigue can be both instantaneous, from overvoltage, and accumulated. The more the bark is exhausted, the worse it resists temptations. And procrastination is thus a surrender of the cortex to the limbic system. A series of table football games against the background of an unfinished paragraph

Two by three

Famous procrastinators

In 1956, the American Les Vaas announced the recruitment of members to the Procrastinator's Club. When the first candidates sent in their applications, Les set a date for the meeting, and then postponed it for several years until the joke finally reached everyone. “This was, perhaps, the first and last time when procrastinators tried to unite,” says the same Ferrari, from whose words we recorded this story. "In general, they do not like to be in the company of their own kind, because the sight of a loafing person exacerbates their feelings of guilt." In addition, the professor argues that it is difficult for procrastinators to empathize and help each other because they are not the same.

Ferrari distinguishes three types of these poor fellows.

1. Awe hunters

(I must say, in the original, the names of these types sound much more elegant, but why litter the language with the words "trilseekers" and "trackers".) They put things off until the last, so that they can pile on and, trembling with horror and euphoria, do everything in one sitting ...

2. Avoiders

They put off any business without looking, so as not to make a mistake or, even worse, not to succeed. Because success can lead to new, more challenging assignments. They are very afraid of the assessments of others, the burden of responsibility, criticism, praise, and in general everything. They try to give an even average result, balancing on a fine line between "Well, almost normal" and "It could be better, but okay, it will do."

3. Indecisive

It is corny that they do not know how to prioritize and work according to plan. In general, they postpone all matters, including pleasant ones, until they feel pressure from the outside.

Surprisingly, this classification almost completely coincides with the conclusions of another fighter against procrastination - B. Tracy. True, he is not a scientist, but a marketer and boss. recruiting agency... But this may be for the best: with tact not typical of a scientist, Tracy shifts the emphasis to the business itself, instead of calling people neurotic and incapable of working weaklings.

According to him, not people are divided into three types, but overwhelming cases.

1. Cases-elephants

They are so large-scale and unapproachable that they frighten a person. Eating an elephant (for skinny old man Tracy, suspiciously obsessed with culinary metaphors) in one sitting is impossible. It is not clear where to start, whether you have enough strength and appetite. However, in addition to fear, the elephant also evokes superstitious delight: so much meat!

2. Frog cases

All as one are unpleasant. You don't want to chew them, but even take them in your hands. In addition to the fear of such things, Tracy also writes about anxiety: they say, what others will think when they see me eat a frog. This is one hundred percent the same as Ferrari's description of avoidant.

3. Cases-oranges

In appearance, they are so identical that it is not clear which one to take first, but everything seems to be necessary to sit.

Eat oranges and chew elephants

Tracey has written extensively about how to butcher, shred, and stuff ugly things. For example, a whole book is devoted to frogs, even translated into Russian two years ago. However, his advice is banal and has been criticized by serious scientists more than once.

Judge for yourself.

■ He recommends eating elephants right away, otherwise they "grow in the head" because of the postponement. And you need to start with the most delicious pieces and keep reminding yourself how much is left. Like, after half of it, things will go faster, because this will already be a game of decreasing.

■ With frogs absolutely laughter. Tracy's book consists of platitudes like "plan your day, energize, raise your workaholic." PRG experts Johnson and McCone openly scoff at this. Like telling a true procrastinator to plan his day is like telling someone with clinical depression to smile and not think bad.

■ The author is doing well with oranges. The advice to rely on a simple lot works. As well as advice to delegate the decision: "Darling, remind us that we have a higher priority now: so that I fire you or take care of visitors?"

Yet Tracy's problem is that he sees procrastination as a vice. A bad habit that you need to get rid of. However, it is much easier (and more enjoyable) to believe scientists who regard procrastination as a variant of the norm. A congenital defect that you just need to get along with, like with poor eyesight or a wife's mustache.

And yet: how is it treated?

Having read up to this point, you should have fallen into exultation several times (“I’m not a bad person, I’m a variant of the norm!”) And fall back into depression. To put an end to the endless debate of scientists, we decided to refer one last time to the findings of Ferrari and his group.

Procrastination in numbers

Among the so-called "non-clinical" adults, true procrastinators 20%, regardless of the field of work.
54% of procrastinators are men.
10% are not going to fight their problem, because they love procrastination for the shake it gives (to the brain and in general).

Even the average person, who does not suffer from procrastination, spends an average of 47% of the time at the computer "implementing procrastination."

According to them, procrastination can still be defeated. Moreover, the decision often lies not in the area of ​​time management, planning, monitoring and visits to a psychiatrist.

Your own psychological defense mechanisms (which any person who is not without a brain have) can help fight procrastination or reconcile with it.

Rationalization mechanism

If things are not getting done because of the Internet, turn off the Internet. Break down the refrigerator. Lock your phone. Deliberately cutting yourself off from the tools of procrastination almost always helps you tune in. Why? Think about the limbic system. It demands instant response, quick gratification. If to watch the next episode of "Simon's Cat" you need to climb into a separate program and rummage through the settings or get off the couch to plug the cable into the outlet, the limbic system calms down and the prefrontal cortex has time to regain control.

To help

Extensions for the browser SiteBlock, Anti-porn, Norton Online Family and TimeBoss. All of them allow you to disable individual sites, block entire segments of the Internet, or set yourself a time limit (TimeBoss is especially good in this sense, although it is more difficult than others to configure). Cut yourself off physically (spatially) from analog pleasures or ask for help from loved ones. Let your wife not let you eat or walk around the house on purpose dressed until you finish your work.

Substitution mechanism

Instead of overtly meaningless activities during bouts of procrastination, you can simply switch between activities. Instead of crushing zombies with zucchini on the iPad - read books or watch lectures by various not boring luminaries of science, for example, the "rock star of philosophy" ižek. Better not sit at the computer at all. Drive in a nail, wash the dishes, wring out, soap the rope, shave. Any semi-useful activity that is different from your main task is always better than pseudo-useful.

To help

Book readers. Podcasts. Any site with an online player, search engine, and a good selection of helpful videos — like TED or The Elements. Although push-ups are still more useful.

Displacement mechanism

At worst, instead of fighting procrastination, try to overcome negative attitudes towards it. Stop thinking that your downtime is a mistake, accept it as part of the system and method. In the almost unanimous opinion of scientists, feelings of guilt and regret are as stressful as the very realization of a delay. As soon as you stop reproaching yourself for procrastination, your psyche will be able to release a certain amount of energy that was spent on pangs of conscience. And you can check your mail more often!

What does the doctor say?

Domestic experts, who are also familiar with the phenomenon of procrastination, volunteered to say something in conclusion.

Mikhail Sinkin, neurologist, consultant of the ESC RAMS, head of the department of ultrasound and neurophysiological diagnostics, City Clinical Hospital No. 11:
Typically, procrastination is a purely psychological problem. The neurologist should, however, be mindful of some brain diseases that can manifest with similar symptoms. In particular, impaired metabolism of serotonin, norepinephrine and other neurotransmitters, leading to such a clinical picture, can occur in tumors of the frontal lobe, in the initial stages of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.

Alexey Stepanov, psychologist, consultant of the Discussion Club of the Russian Medical Server (forums.rusmedserv.com):
Many readers will find in the article a reason to say to themselves with relief: “Oh, that's it! It turns out that I have no problems with goal-setting and it is not about my weaknesses. I'm just procrastinating! " I consider it important to warn the reader against such a position. There are many words in the language that are just headings. "Procrastination" is just a term for a range of human manifestations, if you like, symptoms. Procrastination itself is not a diagnosis. It is necessary in each case to look at what it is a symptom of. I see three sources. The first is depressive states, because laziness grows on the basis of despondency. Depression almost always requires professional treatment. The second source is anxiety disorders. Anxiety about achievement can be excruciating, whether the person is expecting failure or winning. Clearing the foundations of your anxiety is a job that you need to do both yourself and with the help of a therapist. Finally, the third possible reason concerns personality manifestations, which, in a neglected case, can reach the level of personality disorder. The key word here is alienation. For example, alienation from the tools and results of labor, known since the days of the first manufactories. Aloofness from one's own "I want" and "it is important for me", leading to meaningless living. “When you understand why, you overcome any“ how ”. This is one of the best answers to the question of how to deal with procrastination.

Two more new laziness

This article would not be complete without mentioning zucchini (just a funny word that we try to insert into all texts) and a retelling of the works of two more scientists. They weren't writing about procrastination in pure form, but rather about amazing types of laziness similar to it.

Incubation

Neuro linguist Art. D. Krashen, a specialist in reading theory (for which only people do not receive a salary!), Believes that creative people should not be scolded for downtime. Referring to the autobiographies of writers, composers and physicists, as well as surveys of creative people conducted in 1995 by Csikszentmihalyi and Sawyer, the scientist makes an unambiguous conclusion: procrastination, simple, useless activities are part of the creative process. At the same time, Krashen rejects the idea of ​​inspiration. When a creative person walks from corner to corner, picking the umbilical felt with his finger, he does not wait for an external stimulus. Stupor is associated with the work of the "extraconscious part of the psyche."

Krashen, analyzing the revelations of geniuses, deduces the following formula for creative work:
■ collection of information, analysis of available data - 20-60% of the total time;
■ incubation - 40-60%;
■ illumination - 0% of the time (Krashen, being a corrosive linguist, insists on the term illumination instead of the usual English enlightenment. According to him, “illumination” more clearly describes the explosive birth of an idea);
■ deliberate "filing", fixing a solution or work - from 10%. To scold a person for the fact that he promised to send an article a week ago, while he himself is playing Civilization V, is stupid, because during the game the article is written to a greater extent than at the time of the actual recording. (If only a week ago, or even two! - Approx.ed.)

Irrational shift

The term belongs to Dan Ariely, professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University. Traveling with lectures and trainings around the world, Dan noticed and described the phenomenon of "moral laziness". You probably know people who say: “Here I will work for ten years in this job, and then immediately go to the islands and start training cockroaches for cockfighting” (or something like that). Perhaps one of your acquaintances is you yourself. Dan believes that by engaging in such self-deception, a person suffers from "procrastination in reverse." Instead of sacrificing serious matters in favor of momentary joys, the poor fellow is engaged in stupid and tedious work, pushing away the pleasures. What's the point? “This is due to the fear of getting out of your comfort zone,” writes Dan. Moving to the islands, vacation, buying an apartment, establishing chickens and pigs - all contain the need to study new information and make some decisions. Much easier to put it all aside and print shredder papers for N pennies a day for a few more years. “Often the subject of the shift, for which a person is supposedly working, can be accomplished with less blood and more pleasure. The problem is that we don't really want to move anything in our life, ”writes Dan sadly, judging by the lack of exclamation marks.

MOSCOW, 11 Sep - RIA Novosti. The desire to postpone things for later is a sure sign that they can not be done at all. Psychologists and psychoanalysts told RIA Novosti what else lies behind the habit of delaying the performance of duties until the last moment and why to-do lists for the day can significantly reduce performance.

Procrastination (from Latin pro - instead of, ahead and crastinus - tomorrow) is a concept in psychology that denotes a tendency to constantly postpone things and responsibilities for later. Psychologists note that it is not caused by laziness, which only accompanies it, but other phenomena that sometimes require specialist advice.

Reason one - lack of personal interest

"We have a very serious problem of including motivation. Besides, I would not say that activity is an absolute value for our national mentality. Why do something? For what? Motivational deficit is a big problem. You have to want something. , to be inspired by something, something must take place in the soul so that an inspiring and enthralling goal appears, "explained Andrei Kopyev, associate professor of the faculty of counseling and clinical psychology at the Moscow City University of Psychology and Education.

If you don't want to do something, psychologists advise you to answer the question to yourself: "Do I need this?" If not, and at the same time, the case can be transferred to someone or even abandoned, then it is better to do so, so as not to feel remorse afterwards for poor-quality or untimely work done.

The second reason is the fear of failure.

Psychologists note that behind the desire to delay the execution of some business until the last moment, there may be fear of one's own failure. Children do not want to learn and do their homework when they do not understand the material, adults are afraid of their responsibilities when they lack qualifications.

The solution to this problem is quite simple: in the case of a child, parents should work with him or hire a tutor for this, working people should find a way to improve their skills to the desired level.

The third reason is internal conflict

The most serious reason for procrastination is associated with a person's internal conflicts, all sorts of anomalies and disorders that he himself may not be aware of and therefore needs the help of a specialist.

"It is likely that in the unconscious there is some kind of active process of psychological defense, and for some reason what needs to be done causes anxiety, rejection. A person does not really understand why, but he cannot force himself. The third theme is almost endless, because that there can be any number of these forms of resistance. It is rather a symptom of an internal conflict, "explained psychoanalyst Dmitry Sklizkov.

Success trait

“Over the past 20 years, I have had to work with a lot of very successful people, and if we talk about the psychological trait that distinguishes successful people from not very successful, it is the ability to think and immediately start doing it. or it is not necessary, whether I succeed or not, "- said Sklizkov.

Special efforts are not required to develop this quality in oneself. All you need to do is set a desired and motivating goal for yourself. If it is there, and at the same time there are no psychological disorders, getting rid of procrastination will be easy: you need to rationally distribute your time and actions.

"For example, books and courses on time management are a very sensible and correct thing. But we must remember that it helps only a certain circle of people who do not have existential and motivational problems, a tendency to melancholy and depression," Kopiev recommended.

The day's to-do list trap

Psychologists remind that making to-do lists makes sense if a person at the same time keeps a clear goal in mind and remembers that all things work to achieve it. For a list for one day, it is advisable to single out the mandatory minimum, for example, two things, and then praise yourself if the third was completed in addition to this.

"A person must clearly understand what he wants and what his values ​​are. Then he will be able to identify the stages for himself, and each step taken will be just training. In all other cases, making a to-do list and any time management can become a way of self-rape and bringing himself to psychosis ", - concluded Sklizkov.

Procrastination. We continue to postpone everything "for later"

Procrastination. We continue to postpone everything "for later"

What is the threat of the habit of procrastinating for later? Remember Scarlett O'Hara's line:"I will think about it tomorrow?" ... This seemingly harmless meaning hides a very dangerous habit that spoils the quality of life. Yes, it turns out that most of us suffer from this bad habit, with the exception of disciplined people who understand that time— it is an irrecoverable resource.

Procrastination (in other words, procrastination) — a psychological phenomenon when the need for important matters is replaced by insignificant ones, as a result of which the overall performance decreases throughout the day. The problem has existed for a long time, especially since the beginning of the emergence of computers, on which it is possible not only to work, but also as an option to play "the kerchief", and today there is a great temptation to get away from "problems" at work for a long time: social networks, email and more.

Many do not even know that they suffer from a similar problem and write off everything as banal laziness. Moreover, with the postponement, people begin to themselvesblame, execute, worry, worry over triflesand accumulate in yourselfvoltage... From the constant finding of a whirlwind of thoughts, a disease such as chronicneurosis,this condition is accompanied bydestabilizing self-esteem and oppressive a feeling of inferiority.

So why is this happening to us? Why do we need to buy time, in the hope that everything will be resolved by itself? There are several reasons for procrastination, and I offer you different approaches to address each of them.

1. The task is not urgent

Crying baby signaling phone deadline— we tend to pay attention to what is right in front of us.

It is difficult to prioritize things that do not require urgent intervention. Cleaning the apartment or trying to save money, we all have things to do that we cannot get to for months or even years.

Solution: put everything in perspective

This annoying addiction actually has evolutionary implications. People are so arranged that the needs of the present moment are placed above those that relate to the future. This is quite natural: the present is in front of us, so we pay more attention to this.

In this case, it can be helpful to keep the big picture in mind instead of fiddling with the details. Look at your daily activities through the lens of your long-term plans.

For example, you wanted to get an education, but you never made a step in that direction. What would this mean for your life? What are the values ​​and goals of education for you? Keeping in mind the big picture can help you get started.

2. It is not clear where to start or what to do next

We often postpone something because we are not sure what to do first. We feel confused, confused, or disorganized.

This kind of procrastination- quicker avoiding negative emotionsthan tasks per se. Nobody likes to feel inept or goofy, so it's understandable why we'd rather focus on TV shows or even cleaning the bathroom. This is called productive procrastination, when we postpone the actual tasks in favor of others.

Solution: make confusion part of the challenge

The key is to realize that it's perfectly okay to feel confused or stupid at the start of a business, especially if you've never done it before.

Therefore, the first step can be taken to overcome your confusion and find out the first necessary step.

Some people need outside help to think more productively. In this case, you can discuss your problem with a friend or colleague in order to understand where to start.

Remember that any business can be difficult to get started. Be prepared for difficulties and mistakes, there is nothing wrong with them.

3. Fear of failure

The zeal of perfectionism— not the worst thing. After all, high standards are achieved through work High Quality... Many successful people have confessed to being perfectionists. However, sometimes high standards can have the opposite effect. We abandon our projects for fear that we will not be able to meet our expectations.

Solution: Divide Your Results From Your Self-Esteem

Perfectionism is often associated with procrastination, but not necessarily highest standards don't let you move. Rather, it is standards mixed with your belief that your results are important to self-esteem get in the way. This combination can knock the soil out from under your feet.

Always remember that there is a difference between who you are and what you have achieved. There are many things that are more important than achievement: your identity, family, hobbies, experiences, travel, friends, taste, knowledge, difficulties overcome, and how you treat people.

4. Some people work better under pressure.

We all know such people who take on things at the last moment and at the same time can do them better than others.

Solution: know yourself

It turns out that such people are planning ahead, just a little differently. There are two types of procrastination: passive and active. The first— what we are used to associating this word with: distraction by extraneous useless activity that interferes with performing basic tasks.

Active procrastination is more strategic. Some people cope better under pressure and prefer to wait for the adrenaline rush and high concentration caused by the approaching deadline. Therefore, they prefer to get down to business later.

Therefore, you should know yourself well in order to determine which rhythm and method of work suits you best.

5. We just don't want to do our job.

Often times, what we need to do is simply boring. It is difficult and we would prefer other activities during this time.

There are things that no one wants to do— go through papers, call technical support, go to bed earlier. How then to proceed?

Solution: measure and compensate

According to European researchers, there is a way out for this. An article in the European Journal of Personality reports that many procrastinated students procrastinate simply because they have exciting alternatives. In their understanding, they do not shirk from work, they are completely ready to learn. Not right now.

They compensated for their procrastination tendencies with a determination to study harder later... In other words, they were catching up early on. In the end, they did learn even more than the non-procrastinating students. Not much, but still more.

A difficult exam or important negotiations are approaching - are you preparing a three-story cake, learning a symphony on the violin, or starting a general cleaning? Congratulations, you are a procrastinator! No, this is not a sophisticated curse and not a synonym for the word "quitter", but a psychological term.

Check if you are a “chronic” procrastinator:

Do you often say to yourself: "I will do it tomorrow"?
- Does it happen that you make important purchases at the last minute?
- Are you wasting time instead of doing the right things?
- Do you often remember that you didn't do something right before leaving the house?
- Do you postpone making decisions if you are not sure of their correctness?
- Do you rearrange the alarm for a few minutes before you finally wake up?
- Do you often find that you have not started the tasks, the deadline for which came “yesterday”?
- Do you have to make excessive efforts to get something done on time?
- Are you late for appointments due to the fact that you have postponed preparations for the last minute?
- How often do your plans for the day remain unfulfilled?

If you gave 7 or more affirmative answers, then the level of your procrastination can be called high; from 4 to 6 - you are in the "risk group"; 3 or less - there is no reason for alarm.

For a deeper and more accurate diagnosis, there are specialized tests, for example, K. Lay (in the Russian-language adaptation of T. Yu. Yudeeva, N. G. Garanyan and D. N. Zhukova) or B. Takmen, - however, full versions methods are paid.

The most important criterion is a person's feelings: does the constant postponement of things in everyday life interfere with work and rest? If this condition becomes obsessive and hurts you, it may be time to change something. But the good news is that even a high level of procrastination does not always mean the need for immediate change.

Procrastination: putting off things and decisions

A similar mechanism operates in the case of ineffective labor organization. If people are often faced with the requirement to redo work already done again and again, delay in fulfilling orders becomes a way (deliberately or not) to reduce the amount of wasted effort.

Procrastination occurs when there are too many "needs" and too few "want" in life.

Indeed, activities that bring pleasure and relaxation, whether it is reading a good book or meeting a loved one, we often not only do not postpone, but also do our best to bring it closer.

Of course, hardly anyone succeeds in building their whole life exclusively out of pleasant deeds, but it is in our power to try to maintain a balance between obligations “for others” and replenishment of resources “for ourselves”.

Active procrastination as a deliberate strategy

In recent decades, the phenomenon of active procrastination has been studied, when people deliberately delay assignments, prefer to work under pressure, and get satisfaction from solving problems at the last minute.

Active procrastinators, unlike passive procrastinators, are able to set goals and set deadlines for their work, but they only get down to business when the deadline approaches.

Procrastination becomes a deliberate strategy: instead of feeling guilty (“I could have done better on the task if I took it on time”) that accompanies ordinary procrastination, such people constantly feel pride in themselves (“I did it again at the last moment”) ...

At the same time, the quality of work performed in an emergency mode can be even higher in comparison with the results of the same person when he works in a measured rhythm.

This strategy is characteristic of people with high self-efficacy - confident that they have enough skills and knowledge to achieve their goals. V stressful situation they prefer to solve problems without unnecessary emotions and not avoid facing difficulties.

So before you get rid of procrastination syndrome, you need to find out if it really interferes with your life or, on the contrary, is it a winning strategy that increases your efficiency? A short test (available in English in this article) will help you determine if you are active or passive procrastination.

Is life possible without procrastination?

If we consider procrastination as a protective mechanism of the psyche, then we must admit that we need it as much as, for example, pain or sleep.

On the one hand, procrastination is a symptom of a malfunction in the work of our brain and / or in the organization of activities, and it is better, of course, to build your life so that there are as few such “bugs” as possible.

On the other hand, overcoming procrastination by “clenching your teeth and doing it at all costs”, as well as trying not to pay attention to pain, is fraught with complications. So The best way- eliminate not the symptom, but the cause.

Of course, situations arise in the life of each of us that require an immediate solution here and now. For example, when the deadline is blazing, and an invisible voice seems to whisper: "No, let's get down to work a little later!" - the primary task is "symptomatic treatment", after which it is already possible to start systemic changes.

Emergency Procrastination Help

In the short term, when you need to overcome procrastination immediately, the following tricks can help solve the problem:

1. Eat the elephant piece by piece. Divide a large task, the volume of which is already terrifying, into several stages that take half an hour or an hour. For example, instead of doing a general cleaning of the entire apartment, you can perform local tasks: sweep the floor, clean up the closet, wipe the kitchen surfaces, interspersing them with conscious rest or even planning the process for several days.

2. Give yourself time to get involved. If you don't want to tackle a serious and complex business, you can "trick" your own brain by first doing the simplest and not requiring large energy expenditures.

When the light tasks have already been completed, the mechanism is often activated. after spontaneous attention , and a person concentrates on work as if by inertia, this happens by itself.

For example, before taking on the substantive part of the diploma project, you can do mechanical work: customize the margins and font, arrange bibliographic references in accordance with GOST - and imperceptibly write a few paragraphs of good-quality text.

3. Fill in the pauses with useful activities. In the short breaks necessary to take a break from the main activity, you can replace the usual "distractions" like social networks or meaningless videos with useful and interesting ones that do not require high concentration of attention. In this case, procrastination will not be accompanied by feelings of guilt for wasted time. Listen to a popular science podcast, tidy up your desktop (both computer and physical), take a walk - in short, take a "smart" break.

4. Eliminate distractions. To overcome procrastination, it can be helpful to change your environment so that you are not tempted to switch to other activities. For example, instead of working remotely from home (where every second you see reminders of unironed linen, uncleaned crumbs, undone rearrangements, etc.), you can go with a laptop to a coworking space or cafe, where it will be much easier to concentrate.

5. Use self-motivation techniques. Promise yourself something pleasant immediately after completing a long-postponed task. So, for each paragraph of the dissertation, you can reward yourself by saving a small amount in a special account, and after completing all the work, celebrate in a cafe or devote a whole day to relaxation and rest.

How to reorganize your life and not forget about your needs

In the medium term - from several months to several years - it is worth reconsidering your own attitude to work and making changes in the organization of work.

A positive effect in the fight against procrastination is provided by time management trainings, which teach you to set goals, correctly prioritize in the presence of several tasks, and plan rest and work taking into account your own biorhythms. If you can rearrange the schedule so that active activity falls on the most productive hours, then the number of postponed tasks (the result of passive procrastination) can be significantly reduced.

In some cases, delegation of responsibilities helps. If, for example, an apartment from month to month remains uncleaned on weekends, because the thought of a vacuum cleaner and a mop causes an attack of nausea, and the accumulated dirt after that has to be washed by a willful decision and with colossal energy expenditures, it may be worth entrusting this work to specially trained assistants for a reasonable fee or household members within the framework of a barter exchange ("you will clean up and wash the dishes, and I will cook").

Finally, a strategic solution to the problem of procrastination is to change attitudes towards business, leisure, and yourself.

To do this, you will have to figure out on your own or together with a psychologist what exactly makes you want to constantly postpone important things: fear of failure? aversion to your own work? feeling worthless and helpless? general breakdown and emotional exhaustion?

The solution to the problem depends on the answer to this question. It is possible that you will need to undergo a course of treatment - for example, in the case of asthenic or depressive disorder. Or radically change the field of professional activity. Or maybe it will be enough to give up part of the workload in favor of a hobby that I have long wanted to do, but somehow it didn’t work out.

You need to learn to listen to yourself and organize your life so that it is complete, interesting and meaningful - only then will you be able to cope with the syndrome of procrastination.

But there is one more way: perhaps it is just worth stopping the fight against procrastination?

An attempt to rethink his life sometimes does not increase labor productivity, but leads to the fact that a person refuses to fit into a system that constantly demands: "Work more efficiently, even more efficiently!" This path is not new: medieval hermits followed it, modern downshifters or hikikomori also choose it, fencing themselves off from other people in order to live by their own rules and find the long-awaited peace.

To do this, you will have to deeply understand yourself and honestly answer the questions: “What brings me real pleasure? What do I want to do?

Maybe your favorite thing in the world is just growing flowers, catching waves on a surfboard, or dancing lindy hop! When the desired way of life acquires clear contours in your mind, think about how to go to it - and gradually move in the right direction.

Well, or put it off until tomorrow.

The time for something to be done is approaching relentlessly, but you do whatever you want to keep from getting to work. You watch movies and sticky videos, surf social media, read magazines. You know you have to work, but you have absolutely no desire to do anything. So you met face to face with the enemy "postpone".

We are all familiar with the phenomenon of procrastination. We love to postpone everything for later, wasting our free time, and we start to do something only when it’s already quite "time". But if we do get down to business, then we panic and regret that we did not start this earlier. We put off business, relax, hide from work and face it when it is already inevitable. And then it repeats over and over. This is the terrible one that eats us up and prevents us from achieving good results. Enough of this power of laziness over us! It's time to end this!

1. Divide your work into small elements

We put things off because we think they are big. Break the case down into small pieces, and then focus on one of them. If even after that you cannot get to work, then divide it into even smaller parts.

2. Change the environment

What is around you directly affects your productivity. Look at your desk and room. Do they make you work, or do you just want to fall on your face in a soft pillow and fall asleep? If the latter, then you must change your workspace.

3. Make a detailed timetable

Having just one for your job is a great reason to put it off. This is because we think there is still plenty of time. So we endlessly continue to procrastinate. Once you've broken down your project into smaller assignments, create a generic timeline with specific deadlines for each assignment. This way, you will know that you have to finish a certain part of the work by a certain time. In order not to postpone these very deadlines (after all, you set them yourself, so you can cancel them yourself, nothing will happen ...) assign yourself small rewards for the work done. Anything you like! Let's say you've done the first part - treat yourself to a chocolate bar that was hidden for a special occasion. We made the second one - watch the new film. Etc.

4. Find a buddy

Having a companion makes the whole process a lot more fun. Ideally, your buddy should have a set of goals of his own. Both of you will ask each other for your accomplishments. It's like a steam diet - you need control from the outside.

5. Tell others about your plans.

This tip works in much the same way as Item 6, only on a larger scale. Tell everyone you can about your projects. And every time you see each other, they will definitely ask about your successes. This will undoubtedly urge you to stop procrastinating.

6. Eliminate lazy pit stops

Set aside anything that distracts you from your goal. Remove browser notifications for new videos, close social media tabs, and so on. Some people will go ahead and delete their accounts wherever they can. But, we believe, this is too radical, since the fight against laziness is more about awareness of our actions than resistance. But, if you feel that it is necessary, then do as you know.

7. Spend time with people who inspire you to take action.

No doubt 10 minutes of talking to Bill Gates or Steve Jobs will give you more incentive than 10 minutes of idleness. It is important to understand that the people we are with influence our behavior. Find friends or colleagues who make you want to work and spend time with them more often. Soon you will be filled with the drive to work. On top of that, you can even work on your task together :)

8. Clarify your goals

Over time, we stop walking in a given direction. This is because we learn more about ourselves and do not change our goals to reflect these. Leave work for a while (short vacation or weekend without work). Give yourself time to reboot. What exactly do you want to achieve now? What needs to be done to achieve this? What steps need to be taken? Does what you are currently doing overlap with these goals? If not, what can be done?

9. Find someone who has already achieved what you are striving for.

Seeing proof that your goals are absolutely attainable if you put in enough effort is the biggest incentive to move forward.

10. Everything is easier than it seems

Are you waiting for the perfect time to do something? Is this not the best time for such and such reasons? Stop thinking about it, because "that moment" will never come, there is no perfect timing. You are either doing it now, or you are not doing it at all. Continuing to wait is only wasting time.

11. Pull yourself together!

In the end, it all boils down to decisive action. You can strategize, plan and make assumptions, but if you don’t do anything, nothing will happen. Just gather your will into a fist. Stop sitting in a familiar place. Enough to postpone for "later", which will never come later!