As a bit fiddler with ADHD who adores elegant complexity, I must hack myself to avoid procrastinating. I easily get lost in things other than the task at hand. Overwhelming problems make me feel like playing a video game to forget what I was procrastinating. After spending time procrastinating tasks by creating yet another productivity system, I’m facing procrastination head-on.
Why Avoid Procrastination?
Maybe a dumb question, but I must get shit done.
Sometimes, procrastination results from prioritization. I’ve procrastinated hundreds of micro-tasks because they are unimportant. However, even those micro tasks occupy my mind space. I love reducing mind clutter.
More insidiously, procrastination is unhealthy. For example, procrastinating a trip to the doctor might become lethal. I rarely procrastinate routine health care, such as a dentist visit or a yearly exam, but I delay healthy activities.
Time is of the essence, and time is money. I like to save time.
Procrastination Isn’t Laziness
What is procrastination? After listening to Tim Pinchyl’s series on the Waking Up app, I learned this definition of procrastination:
the voluntary delay of an intended action despite expecting to be worse off for the delay
— Tim Pinchyl, Solving the Procrastination Puzzle on the Waking Up app
Before listening to this definition, I associated procrastination with laziness. By associating it with laziness, my guilt rises, and shame emerges. Shaming and blaming myself isn’t a great approach to getting shit done.
Knowing that procrastination isn’t laziness but an emotional imbalance resets my feelings about it. I can now approach it with curiosity and compassion.
Procrastination Is An Emotional Imbalance
Tim’s book offers tools for managing my emotions.
He recommends using the acronym CANOE to examine the origin of procrastination.
CANOE stands for:
- Conscientiousness
- Agreeableness
- Neuroticism
- Openness
- Extraversion
Psychologists use these five personality traits in their research. Reflecting on these traits clarifies my emotions and helps me understand my procrastination.
To reveal why I procrastinate, I quiz myself about Conscientiousness and Neuroticism, the two most associated traits.
Intuitively, procrastination was rooted in my unwillingness to commit to a task. However, after listening to Tim’s book, I learned it is rooted in my emotions.
Instead of blaming myself for procrastinating, I am curious and diagnose why.
If I’m procrastinating writing this article because I feel overwhelmed by the task
I’d ask myself:
Conscientiousness
Example: I’m procrastinating on writing because I fear making mistakes.
Am I letting my conscientiousness take over?
I remind myself that mistakes are part of the learning process and that I can always revise my work.
Neuroticism
Example: I need to complete this article, but I’m anxious about sharing it publicly.
Am I letting my neuroticism take over?
I remind myself that people always complain about articles, so why worry?
Procrastination Is A Habit
I’ve held on to two long-running goals throughout my life and have had successes & failures within each.
- Consistently maintain a healthy state of being.
- Run a business.
Both are on the spectrum of success and failure, but wow, I am adept at selectively avoiding tasks related to these goals. I’m genuinely impressed with the mental gymnastics my brain performs to justify or avoid them.
Habit breaking is difficult. I reach for the book Atomic Habits to break procrastination habits. I cue myself by adding reminders and habit stacking.
For example, I habitually use a mobile app called Elevate to improve my cognitive ability. I stack my habit of writing right after using the app.
How Do I Avoid Procrastination?
Routine, routine, routine. Forming habits is a superpower. By integrating important procrastinated tasks into my routine, I get it shit done.
I use reminders on my phone and computer.
I stack procrastinated tasks alongside positive habits.
I’m No Saint
*Everyone procrastinates.* I’m writing this post to face my demons.
Want to hear something funny? I just looked at the timestamp for the draft of this post. I created it in July 2023 and finished it in November 2024. Yes, I’m no saint.
However, this is where compassion comes in handy. When I looked at the time stamp, I laughed out loud. I stepped back, breathed, and pursued a healthy and productive path.