PROCRASTINATION
As we will see in this procrastination essay, this is not a rare phenomenon. Almost everyone is guilty of it at some point in their lives. So we ask ourselves this question – why do people procrastinate even when they are so busy most of the time? We live in the 21st century, where time is our most precious commodity. And yet, we waste this precious resource procrastinating our time away.
“Success is not obtained overnight. It comes in installments; you get a little bit today, a little bit tomorrow until the whole package is given out. The day you procrastinate, you lose that day’s success.”
__ _Israelmore Ayivor.
Someone once said procrastination is the fear of success, people procrastinate because they are afraid of the success that they know will result if they move ahead now. Success is heavy, carries a responsibility with it, it is much easier to procrastinate and live on the ‘someday I’ll philosophy’.
When you procrastinate instead of working on important meaningful tasks, you find yourself performing trivial activities and you also waste time that you could be investing in something meaningful.
“While we waste out time hesitating and postponing life is slipping away”
___Seneca
Procrastination is one of the main barriers blocking you from getting up, making the right decisions, and living the dream life you’ve thought of.
Ancient Greek philosophers like Aristotle and Socrates developed a word to describe procrastination and it’s called “Akrasia”.
Akrasia is a fierce enemy that prevents you from doing what you’ve planned to do.
“My advice is, never do tomorrow what you can do today. Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him”.
__Charles Dickens, David Copperfield.
Procrastination is a trap that many of us falls into. Recent studies show that about 90% of humans do procrastinate to some degree. It usually involves ignoring an important task in favor of one that is more enjoyable. Giving in to this fierce enemy called procrastination can cause us to miss out on achieving our goals.
Laziness is different from procrastination. When you procrastinate you choose to do something else instead of the task that you know you should be doing. Laziness is not wanting to do a task.
Lazy people simply don’t do anything and are just fine with it. Procrastinators on the other hand have the desire to actually do something but can’t force themselves to start.
Relaxation is not procrastination, relaxing recharge you with energy.
Why do we procrastinate?
We do procrastinate because we ignore the value of time, the time we spend here on earth is both limited and finite. Time is the most valuable asset you have, unlike money you cannot borrow, spend or earn more time. Every single second wasted cannot be gotten back.
We also procrastinate because of the lack of self-discipline; this is actually not the primary cause of procrastination but one of the important reasons people procrastinate. To be disciplined, you need to learn how to work on positive habits and also maintain them.
When they procrastinate, the excuse people give is that they cannot work under pressure. So they often leave things to the last minute. However scientific studies prove that wrong. Putting things off until the very last moment creates room for ineffectiveness, guilt, and stress.
How to stop procrastinating
- Have a To-do today list cause having a long to-do list tends to pile on, leading to procrastination.
- Make a habit list. When we have a habit list of things we want to learn helps in our personal development.
- Have a personal time with yourself to reflect on things and also plan.
- Focus more on the rewards of doing a task at the appropriate time.
- Make the consequences of procrastination more immediate.
- Make sure the task to be done is achievable.
Defer no time, delays have dangerous ends. Most people spend more time regretting things they haven’t done than the things they have done. Find that courage to stop procrastination today and watch things change for the better.