We all procrastinate sometimes, it’s just human nature. But some of us are definitely worse about handling it than others, and that includes me. I think most procrastinators have this sort of “all or nothing” mindset, where we either give 100% effort in short bursts of productive energy, or we just over analyze things and don’t end up doing anything for one excuse or another, preferring instead to partake in mindless distractions. But why do we procrastinate? And what effects can uncontrollable procrastinating have in our lives?

Well, everyone has that logical part of our brains that makes plans, sets goals and is capable of rational decision making. And a big part of that rational long-term planning is accepting the fact that we might need to do things that are not so fun and exciting in the moment, in order to make progress and be closer to achieving our future goals. But for procrastinators, this logical decision making part of the brain is often taken over by the strong desire for short term instant gratification. 

If we’re being controlled by this need for instant gratification, everything seems to go by in a blur. We no longer have a concept of past and future, there is only the concept of now, and what we can do to make now as comfortable, easy and fun as possible. This often means that we’re easily distracted by various things, like spending hours playing video games or watching a television series, things that are fun and engaging in the moment, but won’t actually do much in the way of progressing towards your long term goals. And when you’ve already slipped inside this distraction zone, it’s really hard to get out of it.

Funnily enough, when we’re deep in our distraction zones, we don’t actually feel happy and content, because we know it’s not earned. There’s underlying feelings of guilt, dread, anxiety and self-hatred; because deep down we know that we’re not doing the things we’re supposed to be doing. 

Now the most effective way to get out of the distraction zone, is the panic you feel when a deadline is coming up. Then your system kicks into overdrive and you frantically work on what you’re supposed to do weeks ago. And for the most part, it works. When people talk about the effects of procrastination, it’s mostly “Oh I keep putting off my assignments until right before the deadline.” But there’s another, darker effect to procrastination that affects us on a much larger scale, even throughout our entire lives. 

I keep procrastinating because it usually works out for me, I can cram in as much work as I possibly can just before the deadline hits, and my work will often be good enough to pass. It definitely is not the best I could have made it, but it’s still good enough. But these sorts of scenarios don’t happen all the time. What if the project you needed to work on is far too big to be rushed in one day? What if it’s long term goals that have no discernible deadline? If that’s the case things get much more complicated. 

When things we have to work on have a tangible and strict deadline, then the effects of our procrastination are contained in the short term, we get a productivity boost and finish whatever it is we need to do just before the deadline. What procrastinators have the most trouble with is when there is no deadline. When there’s no sense of panic that drives you, then you can easily waste day after day doing nothing, stuck inside the distraction zone where nothing can snap you out of it.  This is the very dangerous and scary side of procrastination that’s not really talked about as much, because it’s much less visible and not as dramatic as the usual “panicking about the deadline” kind of procrastination. 

These are things that can be outside of the realm of our education and career, such as exercising, relationships, personal growth and development. It’s hard feeling stuck as a long term procrastinator, because I want to be doing important and meaningful things with my time, but it seems almost impossible to climb my way out of this pit. It’s difficult knowing exactly why you’re failing, and yet feeling powerless to actually do something about it. It seems like everyone else is moving forward while I’m standing still. It feels like you’re just a spectator in your own life, cursed to stand by the wayside, watching everything slowly crumble away. What I feel guilty about is not that I couldn’t achieve my dreams, it is that I didn’t even have the heart to try. 

There are things that I wished I’d have done differently, but we can’t change the past. All we can do is acknowledge what we did wrong, address the specific issues and make a commitment to do better from now on. There’s no magical instant way to suddenly solve our procrastination issues and turn us into motivated, disciplined hard workers in a day. Like everything, it’s a long process that takes time and continued effort. But if you’re willing to try to be better, then you’re already going in the right direction. Believe in yourself and don’t let procrastination get the better of you that easily. I wish you good luck in this journey, until next time.