No need to postpone. Disease of tomorrow. The habit of putting off important things until later is dangerous. Scientific approach

The habit of procrastinating. How to overcome procrastination.

Time ... It seems that there is so much of it, and that the whole life is ahead. So many people who do not want to rush to live think so - and it is completely in vain, because no one can know what will happen to us tomorrow. What awaits a person in the future is a riddle that a person solves only when this future comes and becomes real. However, by letting the situation take its course and not thinking at all about shaping a wonderful future, we often create an unenviable present for ourselves.

Hello dear readers. Today I invite you to consider the very serious problem of many potentially successful people who never become successful. Moreover, it is precisely because of this problem that a person loses all desire to achieve at least something worthwhile in his life, and this despite solid intellectual and physical capabilities. Alas, only some people who are faced with this problem see it as a problem - the rest simply believe that this is not a problem at all, but an ordinary habit that does not affect the results of their activities. So, we will talk about the habit of postponing everything for later - procrastination.

We very often put off important things for later, explaining this by the need to do “a lot of important things” at the same time. However, what then appears as the cases that we call important? As a rule, this is watching a television program, checking Email, a walk in the park, brewing another cup of tea, rest after rest, etc. Of course, some of these cases are vital, but not when a person has passed all the critical deadlines for completing a report, preparing for an exam, etc.

It is quite normal if a person is engaged in a business that is not important here and now, due to the presence of specific need, the satisfaction of which can improve a person's condition and give him the necessary vitality. For example, while performing a task that is most important to a person, a person may become distracted and:

Brew strong tea to compensate for the lack of caffeine in the body, leading to a sharp decrease in efficiency;

Free up 20-30 minutes of time (but not half a day, as procrastinators do!) to take a walk in the park and breathe fresh air, fill your body with vital oxygen, as well as relax your soul from the accumulated fatigue and everyday bustle;

Go online and check your email, because the person is waiting for a very important message (and not just “sitting” in the mail or social network to write another “Hello. How are you?");

Go to the store to purchase an important thing for yourself or receive an important service (and not just to pass an hour or two);

Lie down to rest in order to restore strength (and not because there is nothing else to do or laziness to do anything);

Watch an information program that tells important information for a person, or a football match of your favorite team, after which a person will be able to start an important business with renewed vigor (but not watching the next football match of teams that a person hears about for the first time).

A person who at least once decided to postpone an important matter until later begins to develop the habit of postponing a decision important issues, which subsequently results in trouble at work, loss of trust of loved ones and colleagues, financial losses and missed opportunities, etc. Such a person, throughout the entire period of the task allotted to him, in every possible way delays time, spending it on absolutely unnecessary things, and when a person realizes that everything possible dates passed, he either refuses to complete the task, or tries to complete it in an unrealistically short time. It is no secret that both in the first and in the second case he will fail.

Procrastination can cause feelings of guilt and despair, an incredible loss of productivity and self-confidence. When a person spends his energy on secondary matters, his feeling of anxiety constantly increases, he understands that such actions will not lead him to a positive result, but continues to waste his time uselessly. When there is very little time left, a person begins to carry out the task with all his strength, but it is already too late, and these desperate attempts only kill the remnants of faith in success in a person.

Let's take a look at the main causes of procrastination together:

1. Fear of failing. Fear of failure, of course, is the primary cause of procrastination, because if a person were not afraid of anything, he would simply take on an important task and calmly bring it to the end. But it’s not like that - unpleasant thoughts constantly revolve in the head of many people prone to procrastination - “what if I don’t succeed?”, “maybe I shouldn’t take on this business?”, “I don’t have enough qualities to achieving success in this matter”, etc. The fear of failure is especially dangerous for people who are accustomed to always do everything right and not upset anyone. When it comes to learning, these people always strive to get the highest mark, and are afraid of a different outcome for themselves. These people are called perfectionists, and more than anyone else, they are prone to procrastination. If a person is used to always doing everything right, but at the same time he is not 100% sure that he will achieve the desired result, he will make every effort to delay the completion of the task. And when only half an hour is left at his disposal, the person begins to understand that he has nowhere to retreat, and he tries to correct the situation, but all in vain. A perfectionist will not tolerate not only failure, but even the thought of it, and in vain, because he loses the opportunity to learn from his own mistakes, gaining important knowledge.

2. Human inability to prioritize and act on them. Such a person either has a lot of tasks that he tries to complete at the same time, without thinking about the degree of importance of each of the tasks, or he does not single out any tasks in his work and prefers, taking the position “what will be - that will be”, to go with the flow of life . A person simply does not have an understanding of which of the tasks is the most important and capable of providing the desired result, and therefore he performs, first of all, tasks of little significance, for which a person spends a lot of energy and, when he comes to complete a really important task, a person simply does not enough energy to carry it out.

3. Unwillingness to overcome obstacles. On the way to the goal of each person, obstacles await - and this is a fact. However, the procrastinator is well aware of how much effort he will have to spend, and decides to just let the situation take its course, and instead of moving towards the goal, he spends his time on empty activities - viewing mail, computer games, etc. Of course, giving up on a goal is much easier than being willing to sacrifice time and energy to achieve it. And for sure, living in a virtual, invented world is often more pleasant than in reality, but do you need such a life? The meaning of life is in constant development, and where there is no development, there is degradation. If, instead of learning important new information and mastering skills that will be a solid foundation for your future success, you will waste your precious time to doing nothing, you thereby consciously decide to take the path of degradation. Just don't be surprised after that why others succeed, and you have remained at your starting point. Make up your mind to overcome all the necessary obstacles, and start doing it right now, while you have the necessary time and energy to do so.

4. Emotional starvation. It is emotional starvation that is one of the main reasons for the habit of putting off important things. To achieve success, a person often has to perform monotonous monotonous work throughout the day. And, even if a person likes what he does, monotonous work can take a lot of vital energy from him, as it requires endurance and constant concentration of attention on the goal. Naturally, a person prone to procrastination quickly gets bored with monotonous work, he forgets about the goal and decides to “unwind” and rest, thereby delaying the deadline as much as possible. important work. And how most often does a person prefer to “disperse”? Of course - through the main time wasters - surfing the Internet, checking e-mail, playing computer games, talking about nothing on the phone, watching the next TV show, the next optional snack, etc. By these actions, a person “kills two birds with one stone” - gets rid of emotional hunger and effectively shirks work. However, in the future, a person begins to like this idleness more and more, which, in fact, is not surprising, because lying on the couch is much more pleasant than wasting energy and overcoming obstacles on the way to the desired result. All this leads to only one thing - during his stay in a passive state, a person misses many potential opportunities, and also begins to reproach himself for being inactive when he had a real opportunity to change his life for the better.

5. Desire to show your independence. Any movement towards the goal is connected with the need for a person to sacrifice his own freedom. A person becomes literally dependent on his goal, devoting his strength and time to achieve it. A purposeful person perfectly understands the need for such a “sacrifice”, and therefore does not allow himself to be distracted by extraneous things until the goal is achieved. However, most often, sooner or later, an inner voice begins to say to a person: “Just look at what you have become! You have become an absolutely dependent person who is not free to do what he wants. After all, you were born free - so enjoy your freedom! Finally leave this work and go and rest.” To which a person who wants to show his independence replies: “But it’s true! How much can you work hard for a result that will be achieved no one knows when? You have to think about yourself too." As a result, a person puts off all important things, and begins to show his independence - to live for his own pleasure. But at the same time, a person also forgets that the desire to prove one's independence and the desire to achieve a goal are two absolutely opposite things. In the end, a person who strives to seem independent spends all the opportunities for success and becomes truly dependent, because he does not manage to realize anything he has planned in life.

6. Fear of novelty. Often, in order to effectively overcome all the obstacles on the way to the goal, a person is required to change his actions, model and stereotypes of behavior, mode of work, etc., which is quite difficult for many, because any significant changes cause fear in a person. A person often does not want to change anything in himself at all, he is already satisfied with everything in himself. But at the same time, a person understands that without the changes that so terrify him, success cannot be achieved. That is why, not daring to change and, at the same time, being unable to abandon his goal, a person simply begins to switch to activities that are not related to achieving the goal, wasting his time in vain.

7. self-restraint. Very often a person puts off doing an important thing until later due to fear ... of success. Yes, paradoxically, but many of us are afraid to be successful, do not dare to do everything in our power to stand out from the crowd, fear criticism, envy and hatred from other people. In other words, a person is afraid to show himself better than other people. Nothing will help a person achieve success in any business until he copes with his internal limitations. He must realize his right to be the way he is - even if in fact he is better and smarter than all people on earth.

8. Unclear life goals. If a person has not decided what goal he is going to achieve in his life, he will not know the answer to one of the main questions: “Why am I doing this? What will I achieve as a result of my actions? A person living without a life goal begins to doubt the importance of any task, and therefore he does not strive to move on to its implementation. Moreover, a person without a goal quickly falls into depression and begins to feel tired from everything that happens in his life.

9. The need to do the job you hate. If a person does not like everything that he does, he will do everything in his power in order not to start unloved work for as long as possible.

Well, with the reasons forcing people to postpone things important for achieving success for an indefinite period, we figured it out. Now is the time to name the main ways to deal with procrastination:

1. If you are overcome by the desire to leave an important matter and move on to an activity that does not bring you benefit, or simply to the desire to put the matter on the back burner, you are better off take a little break and walk down the street in the fresh air. This walk will give you self-confidence and desire to succeed. Do not forget about good rest and good sleep, excessive fatigue has not helped anyone on the way to the desired goal.

2. Learn to plan your time. Only with planning skills can you make your work productive and of high quality, as well as increase your own efficiency. Having a clear, realistic plan will prevent you from doing things that are not related to achievement. ultimate goal affairs, and, accordingly, you will not have a desire to postpone things for later.

3. Develop a strong character and willpower. It is willpower and a strong character that will allow a person to remain true to his goal even when the desire to give up and come to terms with current position cases will reach its maximum. The best way to develop your willpower is to exercise. Daily morning exercises are a must. Do it with discipline every day at the same time, which will allow you to also be disciplined in completing important tasks.

4. Change your attitude towards time-consuming and, at first glance, difficult tasks. Very often, a person tends to delay the completion of an important task from the point of view of achieving success solely because this task frightens him with its laboriousness. A person simply does not believe that he is able to complete the task, and does not understand at all where to start. In order for the task not to scare you with its impracticability, break the process of its implementation into certain stages, and after each of the stages take breaks in order to restore your vitality. Also, do not forget to reward yourself in some way after passing through each of the stages of the process, so that throughout the entire process of achieving what you want, you do not forget that after completing the task you will find a worthy reward, and it is worth spending effort and time to receive it.

5. Declare war on the true cause of procrastination - fear., which fetters your will and paralyzes the desire to take the initiative. The most common fear a procrastinator experiences is the fear of failure. He is frightened by everything unknown, he has not previously encountered such a task, and now he is afraid that one wrong action can nullify all his efforts. It also happens that a person, on the contrary, has repeatedly completed some important task, but at the same time constantly failed, and now, at the mere thought of repeating the task, these unsuccessful attempts to achieve success pop up in the person’s memory one after another, as a result of which the any desire to act in order to prevent repeated failure.

The fear of winning can sometimes be very difficult, but a person with a strong will and a burning desire to achieve success can do it. Consider briefly the main ways to overcome the fear of failure:

Take it as a rule: Each failure is not a loss, but quite the opposite - it is the acquisition of the necessary life experience. But if so, then it turns out that in any of the outcomes you win - either you will succeed and achieve your desired goal, or in the worst case, gain important experience and knowledge that can prevent you from making repeated mistakes. You need to take concrete steps to be successful, right? After all, you will be the winner anyway!

Always have a back up plan. In order to reduce the losses from the possible unsuccessful outcome of your attempts to achieve what you want, you should always stock up on a backup plan, according to which, in case of failure, you will act. This way, if your first attempt to reach your goal is not successful, you will know what steps you need to take in the future. If you have a backup plan, failure will not take you by surprise - you will be prepared for it, and therefore your further actions will not be panicky and chaotic, but calm and deliberate, which will significantly increase your chances of success;

Whatever happens - act! Never give up on action, even when it seems extremely difficult. The most important reason why a person begins to reproach himself in case of failure is inaction. It's much better to fail ten out of ten and know that you acted and tried to make a difference in the situation. better side than doing nothing not to make a single mistake;

Use visualization actively. In the process of visualization, a person mentally imagines that success has already been achieved, and in bright colors he sees and feels everything that he would feel and see if success would actually be achieved. Best time for visualization - before going to bed. Sit comfortably, close your eyes and imagine how you are easily and confidently approaching your goal step by step. In bright colors, imagine that indescribable delight and sincere joy that you will experience after your goal is achieved. After that, in reality, your self-confidence will increase significantly, and with it, the chances of achieving the desired result will increase.

6. Do not hide from the problem, but honestly admit it. Whatever problem makes you do everything possible to delay its solution, you should honestly acknowledge its presence. If you just turn a blind eye to the problem and assume that everything is in order, in the end, this problem will become the main reason for your failure. When a problem is recognized by a person, he knows what to fight and plans specific actions and methods to achieve victory in this fight.

7. Take full responsibility for the result. I guess this is one of the most better ways fight the habit of putting off important things for later. When a person does not recognize his absolute responsibility for the result, he thinks: “Why should I do anything right now? Anyway, in case of failure, circumstances / bad luck / karma / neighbor Vasya will be to blame (underline as necessary). And here's the surprise - failure really happens to a person! As they say, who would doubt.

If you want to break the habit of procrastinating important things, you should understand that you and only you are responsible for the result of any business you organize. When you understand this, you will have something to lose, and you will do your best to complete the task on time and with exceptional quality.

8. If procrastination is due to the fact that you do not get any pleasure from your work, you should seriously consider change job.

9. Don't forget to take breaks. No matter how energetic a person you are, you should also rest between work in order to restore strength and again take up important tasks with enthusiasm. If you think that you are able to cope with a task of any complexity without any interruptions, sooner or later you run the risk of “burning out”, losing strength and the desire to move forward towards the intended goal. Ideally, in the process of work, you can allocate 5 minutes of time every hour in order to relax or get some fresh air. To do this, make it a rule - “5 minutes before the end of each hour of work, I set aside time for myself” - and strictly follow this rule.

10. Set tight deadlines for each task. If you have several tasks to complete in a day that can bring you closer to the final result, determine for yourself clear time periods for completing each of the tasks, and follow them. You don't need to plan that you will complete the "five tasks for today", because in this way you will definitely not complete them. It is better to plan like this: “From 9:00 to 10:30 - task 1; from 10:35 to 11:50 - task 2, etc.” In any case, each task must have its own deadline - the time after which the task has no right to be completed. Over time, by applying this advice, you will be able to perform a lot of tasks in a relatively short period of time.

And, whatever happens, remember that everything in this life depends on you, and therefore do not let procrastination take away your precious time, which you can use for the benefit of yourself and others.

Are you used to constantly putting off important things, and at work you drink tea all day and sit on Facebook? Don't worry, it's not your fault. You're just sick. Procrastination. Go on sick leave.

Alexey Dubkov Alexey Karaulov

So, you checked your mail for the hundredth time, folded your coffee, brewed solitaire, smoked the news. Here, it would seem, and work. But you suddenly came across an article on how to stop shirking and start working - this is our article. So be it, read it, and then finish everything quickly, quickly!

Let's say right away: despite the title, we will not talk about any kind of laziness, but only about one of its varieties, which has recently become very widespread and, according to a number of scientists, has taken the form of neurosis. We are talking about procrastination - the habit of putting off important things again and again in favor of pleasant, harmless, but completely unnecessary activities. If this is the first time you hear such a term, but you are already ready to exclaim: “So that's why I spend hours at work, kicking and hanging around! I have a terrible disease - procrastination! - do not rush. Wait until the end of the article. After reading, you may be enriched with some more terms, excuses and reasons to feel sorry for yourself.

Pro-beauty... what?

The history of the phenomenon has thousands of years. Even the ancient Egyptians wrote about the endless postponing of affairs for later (well, as they wrote - dug out on the walls). Moreover, they had two hieroglyphs to denote such a delay: with negative consequences - “The fool that pulled!” and with positive ones - “Thank God that I didn’t do it, I just would have wasted my time!” He also wrote about a special kind of laziness in 800 BC. e. Greek poet Hedroid. Since there are no academic translations of his poems, be content with our version: “The husband who put off work for for a long time, with poverty, arm in arm, walks further in life. (Glorious is the editor who made such a translation!)

The term “procrastination” itself appeared already in Ancient Rome as a result of the addition of two words: the preposition pro (“towards, forward”) and crastinus (“tomorrow”). The word is found in the writings of historians, and in a positive context. Procrastination is the talent of wise politicians and military leaders who do not make hasty decisions, do not come into conflict and are not in a hurry to pay a prostitute in the hope that the lupanar will catch fire and it will be possible to escape under the guise.

AT new history the term arose only in 1682, in a sermon by the Reverend Anthony Walker. As usual for all saints, thinking about what else to take up arms against, the Englishman Walker fished procrastination into the light of day and declared it a sin. The word took root, in the 18th century it got into print and stuck to the slogans of the industrial revolution in the spirit of "The factories are standing, only procrastinators are around." Since then, laziness and the compromised Latin term have not been separated.

What is the difference?

If you ask more precisely - why even a single word? Why can't you say "laziness", "simple", "negligence"? To understand the difference, just read the modern definition of procrastination. It was formulated by Professor J. R. Ferrari, head of the Procrastination Research Group (PRG) at Carleton University in Ottawa:

Procrastination is
1) procrastination habit
2) unconditionally perceived as important,
3) gradually becoming a neurotic pattern of behavior and
4) causing a persistent frustration or guilt in the procrastinator.

Do not rush to envy the professor and think that he created this definition while sitting in his office and throwing darts into the coffee maker. His group has done significant work in the fields of neuroscience, psychology, and statistics. Again, if procrastination is their main occupation, they probably try their best to delay it and work with might and main.

Ferrari emphasizes that mindfulness is the most important sign of procrastination. It’s not enough to break deadlines and do the job poorly - this can be any nerd who overestimated his strength or did not understand the problem. You also need to realize until the last moment that you are deliberately doing nonsense, although you could have worked.

7 facts about procrastination

Lovingly assembled by ProfessorFerrari's subordinates over the years of their activity.

Fact #1

Let's start almost with a compliment - however, it will be the only one in the entire article, so do not read it all at once, leave a little for the morning. So, according to PRG, procrastinators are generally much more optimistic ordinary people . Moreover, as tests have shown, optimism does not prevent them from calculating their strength and time. Fearlessness and faith in a miracle are only about assessing the risks associated with not doing the job.

Fact #2

Procrastinators are not born. It's all about upbringing. Although there is still a lot of uncertainty. Ferrari knows one thing for sure: an incredible number of his wards grew up in families with an authoritarian type of upbringing (see our article ""). A rigid, control-obsessed parent pushes the child to avoid any independent activity, prevents him from hearing his desires. The child does only what he is told. Worse than that, latent hatred of prohibitions (“And don’t you dare climb on the closet anymore, while I hide a naked aunt in it from my mother!”) makes an already adult procrastinator surround himself with people who forgive him any punctures. And this, of course, only exacerbates his conniving attitude towards himself.

Fact #3

Procrastinators, on average, drink more than their co-workers and peers. They do this, firstly, for the sake of feeling, as Venichka Erofeev wrote, “absorption in nothing.” Secondly, procrastination is often the result of poor self-control. Drinking excess is another special case this problem.

Fact #4

The most common type of self-deception which procrastinators resort to is "I can only work under pressure." The second most popular - "I'll do it tomorrow with fresh forces." At the same time, Ferrari's tricky tests prove that no noticeable increase in productivity happens - neither after a long rest, nor in an emergency.

Fact #5

PRG patients are not just playing for time. They actively look for distractions to keep them from doing what they need to do. They are looking for two criteria: a) the opportunity to constantly return to business; b) the inability to lose and screw up. The most popular distractor is mail checking.

Fact #6

In the ranks of procrastinators, there is an abnormally high percentage of people with poor health. Resistance colds twice lower than in the group of ordinary people, the vulnerability to gastro-infections is three times higher.

Fact #7

Sometimes due to more or less random reasons (an unprecedented external stimulus, personal choice, a promise to a loved one who threatens you with an iron) procrastinator can completely change. True, effective, consciously productive behavior takes more physical strength from him than from an ordinary person. The result is anxiety, frustration, drowsiness; in the end - a return to the usual pattern.

How it works

According to another scientist, P. Steele, who not only wrote the Procrastination Formula series of books, but also reads mini-lectures on YouTube ( canal Procrastinus), the phenomenon is explained quite simply.

The fact is that your desires are not controlled by a small squirrel that lives in your nose (although we understand that this is contrary to everything you life experience), but two areas of the brain.

The first, limbic, of which the pleasure center is also a part, can give rise to strong stimuli: hunger, thirst for sex, fear, an irresistible desire to watch YouTube again. It is quite difficult to resist the signals of this system, it never sleeps, it is able to suppress the voice of reason and, most importantly, does not understand what time is. Limbic desires cannot be long-term. It is a machine for making quick demands and getting short-term pleasures. "Hey, well! It's like a voice in your head is telling you. - Just think, one game of table football! It's five minutes, and you'll have the whole evening to write an article. But what fun! The problem is that this system immediately forgets that it was fun (after all, there is no concept of time for it) - and requires a new quick high.

On the other hand, desires can also be born in the prefrontal areas of the cerebral cortex. There is already a time horizon, planning issues arise ...

But the trouble is, even in people with the most sinuous and hardened bark, these zones get tired sooner or later. Moreover, fatigue can be both instantaneous, from overvoltage, and accumulated. The more exhausted the bark, the worse it resists temptations. And procrastination, therefore, is the surrender of the cortex to the limbic system. A series of games in table football against the background of an unfinished paragraph

two by three

Famous procrastinators

Instead of working on another book, he often spent time on chess problems. Here is how he himself writes about it: “For twenty years ... I devoted a monstrous amount of time to compiling ... tasks. This is a complex, delightful and worthless art ... Mental tension reaches a delusional extreme; the concept of time falls out of consciousness ... and when the fist is unclenched, it turns out that an hour of time has passed, decayed in the brain heated to radiance ... " According to his eldest son, "Music always served as reinforcement for the father." The creator of the theory of relativity could sit relaxed for hours in front of the record player, especially when he "felt that he had reached a dead end, walking along the road of conscious work." In the words of C. P. Snow, a physiologist who held a number of positions in the English government during World War II, the legendary prime minister “was not a quick worker ... he was rather a tireless worker, although often his work was expressed in staring at the ceiling.” This is not a metaphor. According to Snow, Churchill looked at the ceiling quite consciously and could spend hours on it.

In 1956, the American Les Vaas announced the recruitment of members to the Procrastinator Club. When the first candidates sent in their applications, Les set a date for the meeting, and then postponed it for several years, until the joke finally reached everyone. “It was, perhaps, the first and last case when procrastinators tried to unite,” says the same Ferrari, from whose words we recorded this story. “In general, they don’t like to be in the company of their own kind, because the sight of a person lounging around exacerbates their guilt.” In addition, according to the professor, it is difficult for procrastinators to empathize and help each other because they are not the same.

Ferrari identifies three types of these poor fellows.

1. Thrill Hunters

(I must say, in the original, the names of these types sound much more elegant, but why litter the language with the words "thrilseekers" and "avoiders.") .

2. Avoiders

They put off any business without looking, so as not to make a mistake or, even worse, not to succeed. Because success can lead to new, more difficult tasks. They are very afraid of the assessments of others, the burden of responsibility, criticism, praise, and in general everything. They try to give an even average result, balancing on the fine line between "Well, it's almost normal" and "It could be better, but it's okay, and that's fine."

3. Unsolvers

Tritely do not know how to prioritize and work according to plan. In general, they put off all things, including pleasant ones, until they feel pressure from outside.

Surprisingly, this classification almost completely coincides with the conclusions of another fighter against procrastination - B. Tracy. True, he is not a scientist, but a marketer and boss recruitment agency. But this may be for the best: with a tact uncharacteristic of scientists, Tracy shifts the focus to the cases themselves, instead of calling people neurotics and weaklings who are not fit for work.

According to him, not people are divided into three types, but heavy things.

1. Elephant affairs

So large and impregnable that they scare a person. Eating an elephant (for a skinny old man, Tracy is suspiciously obsessed with culinary metaphors) in one sitting is impossible. It is not clear where to start, whether there will be enough strength and appetite. However, in addition to fear, the elephant also causes superstitious delight: so much meat!

2. Frog cases

All, as one, are unpleasant. They do not want not only to chew, but even to pick up. In addition to the fear of such things, Tracy also writes about anxiety: they say that others will think when they see me eating a frog. This is one hundred percent consistent with the description of avoiders in Ferrari.

3. Case-oranges

In appearance, they are so identical that it is not clear which one to take on first, but everything seems to need to sit.

Eat oranges and chew elephants

Tracy has written extensively about how to butcher, shred, and cram things that don't taste good. For example, a whole book is devoted to frogs, even translated into Russian two years ago. However, his advice is banal and has been criticized more than once by serious scientists.

Judge for yourself.

■ Elephants he recommends to eat immediately, otherwise because of the delay they "grow in the head." And you need to start with the most delicious pieces and always remind yourself how much is left. Like, after the half, things will go faster, because it will already be a game to reduce.

■ With frogs quite laughter. Tracey's book is full of platitudes like "plan your day, energize yourself, train yourself to be a workaholic." PRG experts Johnson and McCone openly scoff at this. Like, telling a true procrastinator to plan his day is like telling a person with clinical depression to smile and not think about the bad.

■ The author is doing well with oranges. The advice to rely on a simple draw works. As well as the advice to delegate the decision: “Darling, remind me what is our priority now: so that I fire you or take care of the visitors?”

Yet Tracy's problem is that he sees procrastination as a vice. A bad habit that needs to be kicked out. However, it is much easier (and more pleasant) to believe scientists who consider procrastination to be a variant of the norm. A birth defect that you just need to get used to, like poor eyesight or a wife's mustache.

And yet: how is it treated?

Having read up to this point, you should already have fallen into glee several times ("I'm not a bad person, I'm a variant of the norm!") And fall back into depression. In order to put a kind of end to the endless disputes of scientists, we decided for the last time to refer to the conclusions of Ferrari and his group.

Procrastination in numbers

Data was collected in Australia, UK, Turkey, Peru, Venezuela, Spain, Poland and Saudi Arabia. And since they did not differ there, it can be assumed that something similar is happening with us. 70% of university students consider themselves chronic procrastinators, but in fact, only 25% are such, the rest are ordinary alcoholics and jerks.

Among the so-called "non-clinical" adults, 20% are true procrastinators, regardless of the field of work.
54% of procrastinators are men.
10% are not going to fight their problem because they love procrastination for the shake it gives (the brain and in general).

Even the average non-procrastinating person spends an average of 47% of their computer time “procrastinating.”

According to them, procrastination can still be defeated. Moreover, the solution often lies not in the field of time management, planning, control and visits to a psychiatrist.

Your own psychological defense mechanisms (any person who is not deprived of a brain have them) can help in the fight against procrastination or in reconciliation with it.

rationalization mechanism

If things don't get done because of the Internet, turn off the Internet. Break the refrigerator. Lock the phone. Intentionally cutting yourself off from the tools of procrastination almost always helps you get in the right mood. Why? Think about the limbic system. It requires instant response, quick pleasure. If to watch the next episode of Simon's Cat you need to get into a separate program and rummage through the settings or get up from the couch to plug the cable into the outlet, the limbic system calms down and the prefrontal cortex manages to regain control.

To help

Browser extensions SiteBlock, Anti-porn, Norton Online Family and TimeBoss. All of them allow you to turn off individual sites, block entire segments of the Internet, or set a time limit for yourself (TimeBoss is especially good in this sense, although it is more difficult to configure than others). From analogue pleasures cut yourself off physically (spatially) or ask for help from loved ones. Let your wife not give you food or purposely walk around the house dressed until you finish the work.

Substitution mechanism

Instead of frankly meaningless activities during bouts of procrastination, you can simply switch between things. Instead of crushing zombies with zucchini on your iPad, read books or watch lectures by various non-boring luminaries of science, such as the "rock star of philosophy" Zizek. It's better not to sit at the computer at all. Drive in a nail, wash the dishes, do a push-up, lather the rope, shave. Any semi-useful activity that is different from your main task is always better than a pseudo-useful one.

To help

Book readers. Podcasts. Any site with an online player, search, and a good selection of helpful videos - like TED or The Elements. Although push-ups are still more useful.

Displacement mechanism

At worst, instead of fighting procrastination, try to overcome the negative attitude towards it. Stop thinking that your downtime is a mistake, accept it as part of the system and method. According to the almost unanimous opinion of scientists, the feeling of guilt and regret causes no less stress than the very awareness of the delay. As soon as you stop reproaching yourself for procrastination, the psyche will be able to release a certain amount of strength that went into the pangs of conscience. And you can check your email more often!

What does the doctor say?

Domestic experts, also familiar with the phenomenon of procrastination, volunteered to say something in conclusion.

Mikhail Sinkin, neurologist, consultant of the ERC RAMS, head of the department of ultrasound and neurophysiological diagnostics, City Clinical Hospital No. 11:
As a rule, procrastination is purely a psychological problem. The neurologist should, however, be aware of some diseases of the brain, which may manifest similar symptoms. In particular, a metabolic disorder of serotonin, norepinephrine, and other neurotransmitters, leading to such a clinical picture, can occur with tumors of the frontal lobe, in the initial stages of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.

Alexey Stepanov, psychologist, consultant of the Discussion Club of the Russian Medical Server (forums.rusmedserv.com):
Many readers will find in the article a reason to say to themselves with relief: “Ah, that's it! It turns out that I have no problems with goal setting and it's not my weaknesses. I just procrastinate!” I consider it important to warn the reader against such a position. There are many words in the language that are just headings. "Procrastination" is just a term for a range of human manifestations, if you will, symptoms. Procrastination itself is not a diagnosis. It is necessary in each case to look at what it is a symptom of. I see three sources. The first is depressive states, because laziness grows on the basis of despondency. Depression almost always requires professional treatment. The second source is anxiety disorders. Anxiety about achievement can be excruciating, no matter what a person expects - failure or victory. Clarifying the foundations of your anxiety is work that needs to be done both on your own and with the help of a psychotherapist. Finally, the third possible reason concerns personality manifestations, which in an advanced case can reach the level of a personality disorder. Keyword here is alienation. For example, alienation from the tools and results of labor, known since the time of the first manufactories. Alienation from one's own "I want" and "important to me", leading to a meaningless pastime. “When you understand why, you overcome any “how”. This is one of the best answers to the question of how to deal with procrastination.

Two more new sloths

This article would not be complete without a mention of zucchini (just a funny word that we try to insert into all texts) and a retelling of the work of two more scientists. They did not write about procrastination in its purest form, but rather about similar amazing types of laziness.

Incubation

Neurolinguist St. D. Krashen, a specialist in the theory of reading (for which only people do not get paid!), Believes that creative people cannot be scolded for downtime. Referring to the autobiographies of writers, composers and physicists, as well as to surveys of creative people conducted in 1995 by Csikszentmihalyi and Sawyer, the scientist draws an unambiguous conclusion: procrastination, simple, useless activities are part of the creative process. At the same time, Krashen rejects the idea of ​​inspiration. When a creative person walks from corner to corner, picking at the navel felt with his finger, he does not wait for an external stimulus. Stupor is associated with the work of the "extraconscious part of the psyche."

Krashen, analyzing the revelations of geniuses, derives the following formula creative work:
■ collection of information, analysis of available data - 20–60% of the total time;
■ incubation - 40–60%;
■ illumination - 0% of the time (Krashen, being a caustic linguist, insists on the term illumination instead of the usual English enlightenment (“enlightenment”). According to him, “illumination” describes the explosive birth of an idea more clearly);
■ conscious "processing with a file", fixing a solution or work - from 10%. than at the time of the actual recording. (If only a week ago, or even two! - Approx. ed.)

Irrational shift

The term belongs to Dan Ariely, professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University. Traveling around the world with lectures and trainings, Dan noticed and described the phenomenon of "moral laziness". You probably know people who say: “I’ll work at this job for ten years, and then I’ll immediately go to the islands and start training cockroaches for cockfights” (or something like that). Perhaps one of these acquaintances of yours is yourself. Dan believes that by engaging in such self-deception, a person suffers from "procrastination in reverse." Instead of sacrificing serious deeds in favor of momentary pleasures, the poor fellow is engaged in dull and tedious work, pushing pleasures aside. What's the point? “It comes from the fear of stepping out of your comfort zone,” writes Dan. Moving to the islands, vacations, buying an apartment, keeping chickens and pigs - contain the need to study new information and make some decisions. It's much easier to put all this aside and print paper for a shredder for N pennies a day for a few more years. “Often the subject of the shift, for which a person is supposedly working, can be carried out with less blood and more pleasure. The problem is, we don't really want to move anything in our lives,” Dan writes sadly, judging by the lack of exclamation points.

Why do we want to postpone things until later, what is procrastination and what to do.

Most of us do something as simple as being lazy. Laziness is very pleasant, soak up longer in bed, watch TV with beer or TV shows while eating seeds and just mess around - there is nothing wrong with that, sometimes our body itself requires it in order to relax both body and soul.

But it's not uncommon for it to go too far and take on an uncontrollable form. One of the manifestations of laziness is postponing things "for later" - procrastination.

Procrastination visibly interferes in our lives in various ways - it makes us put off the responsible for the very last moment, it forces us to perceive feasible things as unbearable, leads to conflicts, panics; keeps in alarm and does not allow to relax and rest; robs confidence and causes feelings of guilt and inadequacy.

Almost no one wants to leave a comfortable environment for the sake of business and do something, albeit useful and necessary, but unpleasant, tedious and tedious, requiring patience, and sometimes a person simply does not want to leave the comfort zone.

And ask yourself, did you often, realizing the importance of the matter and the fact that it could change your life, for some reason put off what was planned? And did they do anything afterwards?

Why does a person put off until "later" knowing that this will not advance him in any way to the desired result? One of the main reasons is not the desire to lose this comfortable state in which he arrives at that moment, simply laziness.

Not infrequently this has its own subtext - in this way he shows his disagreement, become the main thing for him to prove their case and justify their refusal of activities, while responsibility is lost.

Because of this approach, all things are done halfway, sluggishly, and possibly even stop, and this is in no way characteristic of the concept of achieving success. Postponing for "later" people indirectly express their unwillingness to achieve the goal.

This form of laziness is into a habit. Putting off unpleasant, necessary things, a person eventually puts off the most important things, they begin to seem and be unpleasant for him.

There is another pitfall here. as an unjustified, deceptive hope - "I will definitely do it tomorrow (later)."

But by and large this is self-deception and nothing more. And again, everything remains undone.

A person needs to do something, something important, but too lazy to do it now. Or he wants to achieve something or, for example, change something in himself, his habits. Decides where to start and says to himself, “That's it, from Monday or tomorrow day I will be different and start to take care of myself or do something.

Consciously, he understands that this is important to him, but he again puts it off with the hope that he will do it later, and now he does not want to leave this comfort zone.

And as a rule, everything ends there, because by this time the thought process changes somewhat, other thoughts come forward, and this already turns from a sincere, strong desire into a kind of struggle with oneself, and often with little hope.

And the clear vision, emotional strength and motivation of what was conceived subsides, and there is less energy left to overcome the difficult beginning, where the main struggle awaits.

And the more such unsuccessful attempts, the less faith, strength and energy to achieve what you want each time.

On this one, the necessary things are not completed, dreams stop, goals are forgotten, and a person does not achieve what he wanted.

Therefore, it is so important to start without delay and bring your started or conceived to end. And all the next 2, 3, 5 and 10th goals and deeds, internally for you, will already be achieved more and more easily. Your Faith in yourself will already become strong, you just believe and you will firmly to know what you can do, and Faith is stronger than even Knowledge. Faith comes first, and then Knowledge.

Always approach with the thought - " If I don't do something now (today) then I'll never do it ". This will help you get ready for action.

Believe me, friends, procrastination is an unnecessary and very bad thing, although at first glance it seems quite harmless. And you wouldn't have found this stupid site now if I procrastinated.

Human behavior in which thirst postpone for later filled with other hidden reasons - dissatisfaction and disappointment with the results, awareness of their wrong actions, fear of error or lack of preparation.

If you are afraid of a mistake or are not sure of your preparedness, then I want to note the words of one person who has achieved his goal.

Even if our correct actions at least slightly cover the mistakes made by 51% - 49%, we will still succeed. And you need to do everything immediately, because for real success you will never be sufficiently prepared, and besides, postponing, you are unlikely to do anything at all, - the words of a very famous, successful person Bodo Schaefer.

In addition, such behavior leads a person to a state when willpower weakens, productivity of work and the desire to do this work decrease. Gradually, this can lead to constant (chronic) stress, decrease and to. Remember this.

And you also need to start gradually thinking more rationally, trying to plan your own working time and break big things into small plans. And divide them into important and less important ones (so as not to be torn apart and get the maximum benefit). Having determined this most important thing, without delay, just take it and do it, or at least start doing it.

Sitting and reading this article, and a mountain of unwashed dishes awaits you in the kitchen? Or, while at work, instead of fulfilling your duties, “walk” around the sites in search of something interesting? No, of course, we are very pleased that you have devoted your time to visiting the Cleo. Do it as often as possible! But remember that regularly postponing things from the category of “necessary” for later, you risk not only not being able to complete what was planned for the day, week or month, but also experiencing an oppressive sense of guilt due to the inability to pull yourself together.

In psychology, this phenomenon is called procrastination. And we are talking about the tendency to procrastinate not only unpleasant deeds, but also thoughts. Are you familiar with the condition that can be conditionally called “I will think about it tomorrow”? When even the very idea of ​​a momentary solution to a complex issue causes almost physical discomfort? Because of such feelings, many people ignore profitable opportunities, let events take their course when it is impossible to do so.

This condition is familiar to almost every one of us and can even be considered the norm to a certain extent. However, only until a person begins to be distracted by important things from procrastination, and not vice versa. Psychologists say that the average procrastinator spends twice as much time on work as he does on "swaying" in front of it. And, as a rule, if nothing is done about it, over the years it only gets worse.

4 Causes of Procrastination

1. The main reason for postponing things until later, experts call the fight against anxiety. If a person does not want to complete a task, believing that it is difficult and he will not succeed, or that no one needs it, then he involuntarily tries to avoid the tension caused by the fear of failure. As a rule, in this case, procrastination is caused by a person’s lack of confidence in their abilities, negative experiences, and low self-esteem.

2. Some people deliberately (albeit not quite consciously) “pull the cat by the tail”, because they simply cannot work effectively in conditions when everything is calm. But burning deadlines give them a huge surge of energy - the adrenaline that arises from understanding that the deadline was yesterday goes off scale and works wonders: sometimes a procrastinator performs duties better than anyone else. However, this approach cannot be considered successful, and it is not suitable for building a career.

3. There is a theory that people who regularly put off difficult things for later are simply afraid of becoming successful. They do not want to declare themselves as capable employees, they do not want to stand out from the crowd. It is more convenient for them to occupy the position of "middle peasants". Hence the desire not to “run ahead of the locomotive”, but to trail somewhere in its tail.

4. There is another explanation for procrastination - biological: it occurs either as a result of frustration, or during a contradiction between two mutually exclusive tasks. This is discussed in great detail in one of the episodes of the program “Everything is like animals”.

What causes procrastination

The main threat for procrastinators is the feeling of guilt, which inevitably appears when people realize that once again they cannot control their own attention. Against this background, a stressful state can develop, leading not only to psychological, but also to physical diseases. The latter appear due to the desire of a person to do everything at the last moment (often at night), while ignoring the need to regularly eat healthy food and get enough sleep.

In addition, a person who regularly postpones responsibilities for later quite reasonably causes dissatisfaction on the part of close people and colleagues. Others believe that a procrastinator cannot be trusted with important matters and solving key issues. As a result, conflicts and misunderstandings appear.

Ways to deal with procrastination

1. Understand the reasons. Try to figure out why you put off the same things with enviable constancy. Perhaps you just do not like your job and everything that is connected with it puts you into a state of despondency. Perhaps you have a rebellious spirit that comes from adolescence and opposition to your parents. There can be a lot of reasons, your task is to understand what is stopping you. This will indeed be a step towards solving the problem.

2. Make a plan of action. This method will require you to be collected. Carefully analyze what you need to do today and what can be put off until tomorrow. And proceed to the implementation of the points of the plan almost automatically: they coped with one thing, crossed it out, rested for ten minutes, and proceeded to the next. At first, it will not be easy, you will want to be distracted by social networks, conversations with colleagues and friends, and other “temptations of a procrastinator.” But for motivation, imagine how much fun you can do when you cross off all the points of the plan for today. And without the overwhelming feeling of guilt.

Many people procrastinate on certain responsibilities out of fear of making a mistake.

3. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. Many people procrastinate on certain responsibilities out of fear of making a mistake. But it is not in vain that they say that only those who do nothing do not make mistakes. Having stuffed himself a bump a couple of times, a person will know which way to go and which one to bypass. Trying is a sure way to success. Therefore, if now it seems to you that your idea is doomed to failure, do not give up, do not delay with its implementation - try it, and next time you will know what to be afraid of and what not.

4. Find motivation. Every thing you do is for something. In order not to anger the boss, to prove yourself, so that you have money to pay off a loan, to help a friend, or to keep your home cozy and clean. There is a reason for everything. You just need to turn them into motivations.

For example, formulate the depressing “if I don’t do it, the boss will kill me” as “I will look in the eyes of the boss as an executive employee who can be relied on.” Instead of “you need to wash the dishes, otherwise there will soon be nothing to eat,” say to yourself, “the kitchen will become clean and comfortable, and after cleaning I will be able to drink delicious tea.” Positive attitudes are always stronger than negative ones.

123RF/Dean Drobot

Allow yourself to rest, but distinguish rest from the banal unwillingness to do something important. It is quite simple to do this - in the first case you will enjoy the process, and in the second you will not be able to relax for a second. Do you want to constantly live in tension?

How do you deal with procrastination?
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MOSCOW, September 11 - RIA Novosti. The desire to put things off until later is a sure sign that they can not be done at all. About what else lies behind the habit of delaying the performance of duties until the last moment and why to-do lists for the day can significantly reduce performance, psychologists and psychoanalysts told RIA Novosti.

Procrastination (from Latin pro - instead of ahead and crastinus - tomorrow) is a concept in psychology that denotes a tendency to constantly put things off and responsibilities for later. Psychologists note that its cause is not laziness, which only accompanies it, but other phenomena that sometimes require specialist advice.

The first reason is the lack of personal interest

“We have a very serious problem of including motivation. Besides, I would not say that activity is an absolute value for our domestic mentality. Why do something? a big problem. You need to want something, be inspired by something, something must take place in the soul in order for an inspiring and captivating goal to appear, ”explained Andrey Kopiev, Associate Professor of the Faculty of Counseling and Clinical Psychology of the Moscow City Psychological and Pedagogical University.

If you don’t want to do something, psychologists advise you to answer the question for yourself: “Do I need this?” If not, and at the same time, the case can be transferred to someone or even abandoned, then it is better to do so, so as not to feel remorse later for poor-quality or untimely work done.

The second reason is the fear of failure.

Psychologists note that behind the desire to delay the execution of some business until the last moment, there may be a fear of one's own failure. Children do not want to study and do homework when they do not understand the material, adults are afraid of their duties when they lack qualifications.

The solution to this problem is quite simple: in the case of a child, parents should work with him or hire a tutor for this, working people should find a way to improve their skills to the desired level.

The third reason is internal conflict

Psychologists about what the desire to become beautiful can lead toThe modern ideal of beauty - painful thinness plus enlarged parts of the face and body - has left the catwalks and glossy magazines. About how this ideal affects the minds of young girls and mature women, what threatens the pathological desire to follow the artificially created image of a beauty, experts told RIA Novosti on International Beauty Day.

The most serious reason for procrastination is associated with a person’s internal conflicts, various anomalies and disorders that he himself may not be aware of and therefore needs the help of a specialist.

“It is likely that in the unconscious there is some kind of active process of psychological defense, and for some reason what needs to be done causes anxiety, rejection. The person does not really understand why, but cannot force himself. The third topic is almost endless, because that there can be any number of these forms of resistance. It is rather a symptom of an internal conflict, "explained psychoanalyst Dmitry Sklizkov.

trait of success

"Over the past 20 years I have had to work with a large number of very successful people, and if we talk about the psychological trait that distinguishes successful people from not very successful people, this is the ability to think and immediately start doing it. Do not hesitate, do not think about whether I need it or not, whether I succeed or not," Sklizkov said.

No special effort is required to develop this quality in oneself. All you have to do is set a desirable and motivating goal for yourself. If it exists, and there are no psychological disorders, it will be easy to get rid of procrastination: you will need to rationally allocate your time and actions.

“For example, books and courses on time management are a very sensible and correct thing. But we must remember that it helps only a certain circle of people who do not have existential and motivational issues, a tendency to melancholy and depressiveness,” recommended Kopyev.

The daily to-do list trap

Psychologists remind that making to-do lists makes sense if a person keeps a clearly set goal in mind and remembers that all things work towards its fulfillment. For a list for one day, it is advisable to highlight the mandatory minimum, for example, two things, and then praise yourself if the third was completed in addition to this.

“A person must clearly understand what he wants and what his values ​​are. Then he will be able to single out stages for himself, and each step taken will be just learning. In all other cases, making a to-do list and any time management can become a way of self-rape and bringing yourself to psychosis," Sklizkov concluded.