Most of us procrastinate, writes Alice Boyes, who believes the problem probably stems from one of three things:
- your habits and systems (or lack thereof)
- your desire to avoid negative emotions (like anxiety and boredom)
- your own flawed thinking patterns (which can make a task seem harder than it is).
Boyes shares simple strategies for managing each and getting off the schneid.
Source: Harvard Business Review, May/June 2022. Link. Procrastinators most likely don’t have good systems and habits. Multiple studies have shown that strong habits reduce our need for self-control. They make it easier to stick to effortful behaviors and resist distractions. But the process of establishing a habit that confers such benefits usually takes a few months.
Also see: You procrastinate because of emotions, not laziness. Regulate them to stop! Cognition Today, March 17, 2021. Link.
There are two trains of thought. One leads to procrastination. The other leads to motivation. And somewhere in between, there is a there is a junction called anxiety.”