The Boomerang Effect - What Are The Causes And Effects Of Procrastination?
If your to-do list seems out of control, you might be struggling with one of the most common forms of self-sabotage: procrastination. Procrastination is the act of putting off what needs to be done in order to avoid a difficult or unpleasant task that you don't want to do.
Many people procrastinate because they are afraid if they start working on something, it will cause them stress—for example being rejected by someone who has been asked for help with their work. A lot of time is also wasted on trying to figure out whether or not it seems possible or worthwhile (which often leads nowhere) before taking action and making progress.
It can also be a matter of putting things off because it's been too long since you've worked on them (you feel rusty) or because you are working in areas that you're less comfortable with or need to study.
Procrastination can be attributed to the structure of your day, your environment, the way you manage your time, and other factors—but the truth is, if procrastination has become a part of your life, it's not your fault. The root cause is more often than not related to psychological issues. For example:
Fear. The fear of not being good enough and/or of being judged for something (especially if it's creative work) can be paralyzing. If you don't feel confident in your abilities, it probably won't make any sense to you that someone might actually like what you're doing.
Perfectionism. Since perfectionists aren't satisfied with inferior quality work, they can spend a long time searching for or waiting for just the right moment, which never comes. They then try to get around procrastination by saying "I'll do [insert task here] later," and before long a hundred tasks have become a hundred reasons why that never happens.
The Seinfeld Effect . This explains why you feel guilty about not doing certain other things that you've been putting off for years. It's called the Seinfeld effect (a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation). If an action is not taken, it seems as though it will lead to consequences (falling prey to the "if something is worth doing, it's worth overdoing"). And that makes procrastination easier to do.
Emotional baggage . If you feel that you have a lot of unresolved emotional issues, going at something difficult might start with a wall of emotions (anger, sadness, etc.) and make things even harder.
Repetitive motion . Whether it's feeling like you're in the same place on your to-do list every day or just never getting around to doing the work that needs to be done, there can be a sense of being stuck in the same place.
The rush of being productive. The act of being productive is rewarding—but if it's not enjoyable and/or meaningful, not much satisfaction is gained from it later.
If procrastination is always undermining your motivation, it's time to evaluate whether or not there are any problems in your life that might be causing you to avoid tasks you don't want to do. This can be a good place to start an assessment of any underlying issues that could be contributing to or causing the problem.
In addition, screening for the above issues might require some self-examination so you can figure out what you need to do about them before starting a workable solution.
Recognizing and dealing with these problems before they become entrenched in your life can prevent procrastination from becoming a problem —but as with anything else, if it becomes a life style, it will be hard to change.
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Bringing it back home: What I've learned through my own personal experience is that there are key things in life (and in business) that you have to commit to and actually follow up on if you want to get the results you've been looking for. If you're serious about success, you won't be able to afford procrastination—even if it's "good enough" for now.
You need to make a commitment, decide what your top priorities are and stop putting them off. Dive in head first and DO WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO GET RESULTS...instead of what you think you'll feel better doing. Procrastination is a dead end path.
So, how do you begin to change? I would say that the first step to any successful journey is to clean out the junk in your life that has been holding you back from moving forward. If there are things you're putting off because it's hard, or because it's too scary; for example, getting started in learning a new skill or business area—you have to be ready for the possibility of failure along the way...and ... those times in your career when success will give you even more opportunities than failure will take away from you.
Because I've been there...and this is the truth of it. I was just about to go through a period where I was going to try to make a decision about a business idea that had not yet been fully formed. When I realized what was happening, I started putting off being ready for it and later, when things started falling into place and the timing was right...I put it all out on the table!
It took me forever, got me down and at times very frustrated...but once I did (which felt like forever), things moved quickly. My business idea became a reality in less than 6 months—from an idea to A REALITY. I was able to expand my reach and increase my income tremendously. I was able to add new clients, improve relationships with current clients, have more time in the day for my family and feel more fulfilled than ever before.
So, guess what? If you're waiting for a sign from God or dooms day or your LOTTERY NUMBERS...to miraculously fall into your lap...THIS IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN! It's a waste of time, it won't make you enough money and even worse, you'll always feel like something is missing. I've done that too—and trust me...it's not a good feeling, it doesn't make you feel very empowered and it will only make you feel miserable.
I promise you if you take action and take action now, you'll soon find yourself in a place where you'll be glad that all that procrastination is behind you. Just do it...and don't wait another day.
Till next time...keep endearing. ~ Missy G.
Conclusion
I hope you have found this article on the topic of Procrastination enlightening. If you have any questions, please feel free to send me an email at [email protected].
I wish you all the best and know that there is always someone out there that can help...you just need to ask!
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“A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at.