Chronic procrastination can be debilitating. Whether it be putting off difficult tasks or missing out on fantastic opportunities, procrastination affects nearly everyone at some point in their lives.
But knowing why we procrastinate can be one simple step towards overcoming this pernicious obstacle in our path towards living our best lives.
There are many different reasons we procrastinate – perfectionism, catastrophising and low self esteem are amongst the possible causes of feeling stuck and lacking the motivation to crack on with the most simple of tasks.
However, most often, the reason why we procrastinate is down to one common reason: fear.
Understanding this link between procrastination and fear is vital to understanding ourselves, our limitations and using this knowledge to fulfil our potential.
Dig a bit deeper into the causes of procrastination article here.
Perfectionism
People who push themselves to achieve almost impossible standards have been regularly seen to suffer from the procrastination bug. Why would perfectionists have trouble getting started with projects? Surely, by their very nature they are brilliant assets to bring value to any project? Well, wanting to act, look and present perfectly is often a self-destructive cover to avoid judgement or blame.
Sometimes, perfectionists only choose tasks they can complete perfectly; this way it will be impossible to brand them a failure. But in doing so, they forego activities that may afford them amazing opportunities, or ones that challenge them and help them grow.
So why do perfectionists procrastinate? Because they are scared of being judged, or being seen as a failure. They suffer from fear just as much as anyone – it just manifests itself under a mask of competency or bravado.
Fear of being rejected
You have had your eye on a potential love interest for a while now. A stolen glance, a smile, a humorous one liner and you’re pretty sure you are not imagining the spark of connection.
But asking them out? It’s absolutely terrifying! So you put it off. Next time you say to yourself. But next time never comes.
Why are you procrastinating? Well it’s for two reasons.
- The target of your affections may downright turn you down. Then it will probably be really awkward and no-one wants that to happen! Even if it has nothing to do with you – they are already in a relationship, they are not looking for love or just don’t feel the same spark as you… you’ve put yourself out there, made yourself vulnerable and now you have to live with the embarrassment if others get to know about your crush.
- By procrastinating, you still have this unrealistic dream of a fabulous life together – the romantic meals out, the walks in the rain, the time spent together. But as soon as you ask – you are risking that ideal. Yeah- they may say yes, but what if they say no? Your ethereal daydreaming will be quashed and that future path will be shut down.
So your fear of rejection, or the fear that a possible future will be shot down in flames stops you acting.
Fear of change
You have this killer idea for a thriller. It’s a guaranteed best-seller – probably destined to be turned into a multi-million dollar franchise with Hollywood’s elite playing the leading roles. You may even have the first draft written. But it’s there that you stop. You apply the breaks. You leave the manuscript in a drawer, never to see the light of day again. Why? It’s a comparatively small job to post your manuscript to an agent or publishing house, certainly quicker than writing the 190 pages in the first place!
Well, it may well be the fear of failure or the fear of success that stops you from acting. Until you get a rejection letter, there’s still a chance it may still be the hottest piece of writing in town.
But what if it gets taken on by an agent? Will you be able to work in your current job with all the meetings and shmoozing you will have to do? Will fame and fortune get to you and change you into a lying, cheating, aggressive S.O.B that is portrayed by the glitterati of Tinsel Town? What if others take advantage of your riches, good nature and fortune?
Because these unspoken fears niggle away just below the consciousness, you find yourself never posting that manuscript that you poured several years of heart and soul into.
In fact, nearly every cause of procrastination can be distilled down to some sort of fear.
The different types of fear
Fear of:
- being seen as incompetent
- regret
- the unknown
- judgement
- losing face or reputation
- failure
- success
- change
- Floundering and not knowing what to do
Why do we have these fears?
- Perhaps we have not had role models in our lives that have given us the confidence to tackle a particular task, or not shown us the methods we need to attempt it.
- Some people have a genetic disposition to anxiety. Managing our anxieties is a skill we can learn but it is difficult when your genes are working against you.
- Perhaps we have suffered failure in the past. Last year’s party was a disaster so we have lost confidence in our ability to organise the proverbial ‘shin-dig in a public house’.
- We have experienced negative judgements in the past from the people who will see your results. Your boss is critical, your partner hasn’t always been supportive… having experienced negative responses in the past make us fearful of the same happening again.
- We suffer from a fixed mindset. We see ourselves as that ‘dog’ who is unable to learn ‘new tricks’. We are too old, too stupid, too poor, too… (insert your own negative belief here).
Banish procrastination
So the deck is stacked against us and we’ll never be able to bust through that wall of procrastination? Well, think again. Here are some excellent tips and tricks to overcome the fear we feel that stops us taking actions.
- Fear setting. Tim Ferriss’s antithesis to ‘goal setting’ allows us to crack open the nebulous fears we are experiencing and begin to make progress. Watch his TED Talk here: Why you should define your fears instead of your goals.
- Work on your mindset. Carol Dweck’s book ‘Growth Mindset’ states that having a fixed mindset which caps our potential can stunt our personal growth. However, understanding that the mind is flexible and new neural connections can be made by repetition means that the old adage is true – there is no such thing as failure… only learning.
- Chunking down a large overwhelming project into its ‘Next Few Steps’ is an excellent way to gain momentum, Try making your next steps as small as possible and see how quickly you make progress!
- Create a Plan B – what will you do if your actions run into trouble or hit a snag? Having a back-up plan can motivate you to take action as you are already solving before you even reach the problem!
- Reverse engineer the problem. Start at the end – with you having completely and utterly crushed your goal. Then work backwards – what steps led you to your triumph? Keep on writing the steps you took until you reach the here and now.
- Find someone who has done what you are trying to do and been successful. Then follow their path. Connect with anyone who has trodden the ground you are forging through and ask their advice.
- Remind yourself of other times that you have succeeded despite overwhelming odds and apply some of these lessons to your current situation. Procrastination is always easier to beat if you are your own best cheerleader!
If you want to learn more about how to overcome procrastination, check out our article: 7 questions to banish procrastination for good
You might also want to dip into the 7 easy ways to overcome procrastination article here.
Conclusion
Understanding that fear is a common reason for procrastination allows us a chink of light in the darkness – a way to combat the destructive forces of ‘putting off’ when we should be ‘forging on’.
Getting to the route of our fears can help us to define, plan and reroute our journey circumnavigating any obstacle and pushing on to the best version of us that we know, deep down, is our birth right.