Procrastination 

• What is Procrastination 
• Functions of Procrastination 
• How to Make Procrastination Work for You 
• When Procrastination No Longer Works 
• Summary

What is Procrastination 

• Definition: The action of delaying or postponing something.
• Putting off what needs to be done.
• Avoiding negative emotions associated with an upcoming activity.
• A creative person’s unconscious is working on the subject at hand, even though the person is not actively engaged in the activity. The creative person needs an outside deadline to get them to complete the task. As the deadline approaches, the unconscious work/preparations come to the forefront of the brain, and the creative person can “pull it together” and accomplish the task. 
• There are two types of procrastinators: The ones who feel energized when the deadline is upon them; The ones who engage in self-attack/self-hatred for having postponed what needed to be done to the very end.
• The first type is able to enjoy the process and feels a sense of relief and accomplishment upon completion of the task.
• The second type spends time and energy beating themselves up for not having done the work ahead of time and believes that they would have done a better job if they had started the work ahead of time. They are not fully satisfied with the product of their work due to the time crunch.

Functions of Procrastination

• Creativity at work.
• Not wanting to feel negative emotions of: Fear of failure; Fear of having to keep up one’s performance due to past success; Having to commit; Being trapped; Being stuck; powerlessness; hopelessness; helplessness; worthlessness.
• Avoidance of having to be locked in something: Not wanting to feel the negative feelings associated with having to decide on/commit to something.
• Fear of Missing Out – If one commits to something now, one might miss out on better options that can come later.
• Enjoying the moment.
• Indulging the id and whatever feels pleasurable in the present.
• Not wanting to feel restricted/restrictive.
• Not wanting to be constructive in the moment.
• Delaying the inevitable.
• A way of organization: Some want to complete small tasks before tackling big ones.
• Setting up to punish oneself with regret later.
• Self-sabotage.
• Self-fulfilling prophecy: I’ve always procrastinated, so I am bound to do it again.
• It feels familiar: “The Monster you know is better than the Monster you don’t.”

How to Make Procrastination Work for You

• Embrace your tendency to wait until the last minute to complete work.
• Remind yourself that procrastination is an indicator of a creative person, and one does not have to be artistically creative.
• Comfort yourself with the idea that your unconscious is at work even when you’re not doing the actual work.
• Trust in the process: When the deadline is upon you, the unconscious will come to the forefront of your mind and collaborate with you.
• Whatever you seem to be distracted in doing, enjoy it! You are depositing into the bank from where you will need to pull from, to batten down the hatches and do the work later.
• Enjoy delaying the work until the tension/pressure to complete the work grabs you.
• Console yourself as you are tackling the work albeit last minute, and embrace the process.
• Cheer yourself on as you do the work: “I am rolling up my sleeves and tackling this project now!”
• The Glass Half Full vs Half Empty Mindset: I am doing the work now vs why did I wait so long?
• Look for external structure to help you meet your deadline: Take workout classes or work out with friends - where others are expecting you to show up; I hired an editor with whom I met on Tuesdays so I could finish writing my doctoral thesis. I stayed up on Monday nights to do this because I didn’t want to waste the money I was paying my editor.
• Sometimes it can be beneficial to create earlier deadlines for yourself. By doing so, you give yourself additional flexibility in case you are unable to meet the initial deadline. Asking others to hold you accountable for these earlier deadlines can also help, ensuring that you have a buffer and are less likely to fall behind. 
• Set up rewards for meeting your deadline: Treat yourself to something enjoyable you only get to do once you’ve met the deadline.
• Set up negative reinforcement for not meeting the deadline: Deprive yourself of a regular treat for not having met the deadline.

When Procrastination No Longer Works

When we are too fraught with guilt or anger toward ourselves for not meeting a deadline, it’s time to look for outside help. We can do so by:

• Ask a friend or family member to check in on us and hold us accountable on a regular basis. We can find accountability partners to hold one another accountable.
• Ask teachers/coaches to hold us accountable by sharing our goals and struggles with them.
• Learn studying/organizational skills to help us tackle deadlines: Look at the syllabus at the beginning of the semester and map out on a calendar when each thing is due - and tackle what needs to be done every week. This can include mapping out the amount of reading needed to be done, when we need to review or study for an upcoming quiz or test, and when we need to start organizing a paper that will become due.
• Utilize the support systems from school: Meet with the teacher, a tutor and/or go to the writing lab for someone to go over our work with us before the actual due date.
• See a therapist who focuses on Executive Functioning to help us set up plans and hold us accountable.
• Find out if there’s a neurological factor in our inability to follow through with plans: Do we have ADHD? If so, obtain a diagnosis and attain accommodations at school or work. Medication is very helpful to help a person with ADHD focus and follow through with work.

Summary

Procrastination is a sign of creativity. Embrace it and have it work for us. Don't waste time and energy beating up ourselves. When we are unable to meet the actual deadlines, seek external help and accountability. 

Enjoy the process of procrastinating when we can!