Why do we procrastinate?
Procrastination is a topic that comes up regularly. I hear friends and clients asking themselves why they put off the things they know they need to do, even the things they want to do. So why do we do it?
Lots of people think that procrastination is a form of laziness but in fact when we keep putting off the thing we want or need to do it’s rarely because we’re lazy. More often than not it’s one of the following common reasons –
we’re stressed
we’re overwhelmed
we’re anxious
we’re in perfectionist mode
we’re fearful of failure
we’re fearful of rejection
Have a think about something you’re procrastinating about now or in the recent past. Was it really because you were lazy or just couldn’t be bothered? That may have been what you were telling yourself but have a look at that list and see if one of these reasons was really the culprit?
I’ve been talking about starting a podcast for well over two years but until last month did nothing concrete to actually make it happen. Was I being lazy? No, I was overwhelmed by all the other things I was doing in my two businesses! I was on the road for 39 weeks a year for one of those years and at least 30 for the other two! I was not procrastinating out of laziness.
When I was in my corporate jobs I always procrastinated when I needed to approach someone else for help, especially if that someone was from outside of the organisation and I didn’t know them well or at all. I hated doing it. I now realise I was procrastinating because I was anxious – not wanting to be a nuisance and fearful of rejection. It was NOT laziness.
What’s going on for you when you’re procrastinating?
For some people when the deadline or the end goal is too far away motivating yourself to take action right now is just too hard. Again, it’s not that you’re lazy but that the reward, the outcome is too far into the future to motivate you right now. This is often the case around health goals, such as when we want to drop a few dress sizes or train for a sporting event that feels a long way off right now. This is where having short term goals or stepping stone goals can help. Goals that are much nearer both in terms of achievement and the timeline. It’s also why you hear me say so often that we need to celebrate those wins too! So if you’re working on dropping more than one dress size set yourself interim goals and celebrate every win along the way!
When any goal or deadline is more than 12 weeks away it’s very easy to say we’ll do something about it next week or next month even. Set those interim short term goals to keep yourself moving and making progress.
If you realise you’re procrastinating because you’re stressed or overwhelmed, what can you do to relieve that stress and overwhelm? Do you need to ask for more help either with the project in hand or in other areas of your life to free yourself from some of the pressure?
If you’re procrastinating because you’re anxious, what specifically is making you anxious? What can you do to relieve that anxiety?
Are you in perfectionist mode, so determined that everything has to be perfect that you’re failing to take any action? If so remind yourself that perfect doesn’t actually exist! Done is better than perfect is so very true as is progress not perfection!
If you’re afraid of failure ask yourself what doing nothing is actually costing you? What’s the real risk and cost of failure? What’s the risk and cost of continuing to do nothing?
And if you’re fearful of rejection remind yourself that it’s a normal human fear but it doesn’t mean that it’s going to happen. What’s the risk and cost of continuing to procrastinate rather than risk possible rejection?
Procrastination can be exhausting. Far more exhausting than actually taking action in most cases and it isn’t surprising when you read that list and realise what is actually going on when we’re procrastinating! Do yourself a favour and find a way to address the underlying cause of the procrastination and move into action. Your future self will thank you for it.
This year the pandemic has meant that I’ve only been away for two weeks since March. The reason for my procrastination fell away and I’m happy to say that I now have a podcast that is out in the world! I’m so excited. You can now listen to the first three episodes of Unlock Your Confidence with Clare Walsh on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher to name just three places! I’ve poured my heart and soul into this so I'd love you to listen!
It’s my mission to help at least 1,000 women to unlock their confidence over the next year and this podcast is a major part of that. I’d love it if you would listen and share it with your friends and it would be incredibly helpful to me if you left a review and subscribed wherever you listen. It all helps other listeners to find me.
As I mentioned last week if you choose to share my social media posts about my podcast to help to spread the word your name will go into a prize draw to win one of two one-to-one coaching sessions with me worth £150. Here’s the links you need to my facebook, linkedin and instagram. Remember to tag me so I know you've posted about my podcast!
Thank you for all your support!
