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PROCRASTINATION
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- 2. Have you everseen the poster of a Polar Bear lying on a slab of floating ice with the caption, “when I get the urge to do something, I lie down until the urge goes away”?
- 3. Definition of Procrastination: Procrastinationis the avoidance of doing a task, which needs to be accomplished. This can lead to feelings of guilt, inadequacy, depression and self- doubt. Procrastination has a high potential for painful consequences, and it interferes with academic and personal success.
- 4. What causes procrastination,and how is it manifested in someone?
- 5. 1. Poor TimeManagement/Disorganization – Not managing your time wisely, uncertain of your priorities, goals and objectives. You might also be overwhelmed with the task and as a result you keep putting off your assignments for a later date. Having a poor distinction between urgency and priority. Procrastinators tend to attend to “comfort” tasks, which are most convenient, interesting, or within reach. Priority is sacrificed for convenience. As these tasks are being attended to, other tasks begin to pile up, and soon a backlog of tasks cry out for attention. The result is that the procrastinator becomes subject tot the tyranny of the urgent, is unable to establish proper priorities, and constantly seeks reprieve from these stresses by attending to tasks that are neither urgent nor priority.
- 6. 2. Difficultly Concentrating/Distractibility– When you sit at your desk you find yourself daydreaming, staring into space instead of doing the task. Your environment is distracting and noisy, your desk is cluttered and unorganized. It’s not surprising to find a procrastinator explaining that a task is left unattended to because “something else came up”.
- 7. 3. Fear andAnxiety – You may be overwhelmed with the task and afraid of failing. As a result you spend a great deal of time worrying. Fear motivated procrastination usually expresses itself as avoidance and the intense desire to either delay performing a task or wait for its expiration so that it no longer has to be dealt with.
- 8. 4. Negative Beliefs– “I can not succeed in anything”, and “I lack the necessary skills to perform the task”, may allow you to stop yourself from getting work done.
- 9. 5. Personal Problems– Financial difficulties, problems with a spouse, significant other, or children, etc………
- 10. 6. Finding thetask boring.
- 11. 7. Unrealistic Expectationsand Perfectionism – You set your goals to an unachievable level and when they can’t be met, you feel like a failure.
- 12. 8. Forgetfulness – Procrastinatorsassume they have an excellent memory and they often insist that they remember even though they appear to have forgotten, “Of course I remember, I was just about to do it”.
- 13. 9. Perfectionism – Mostprocrastinators do not think of themselves as perfectionists. In fact, perfectionism can lead to “starts and spurts” performance, meaning that an individual goes on a spree, or attacks a task with great energy and then slumps back in exhaustion after having exasperated, irritated or alienated everyone around.
- 14. Food for Thought: A.If you are given an assignment with no due date, what do you do? B. Do you wait until the last minute to do your personal bookkeeping? C. Is you gas tank on “E” before you stop at the gas station?
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- 16. 1. Recognize self-defeatingproblems such as and anxiety, difficulty concentrating, poor time management, indecisiveness and perfectionism.
- 17. 2. Identify yourown goals, strengths and weaknesses, values and priorities.
- 18. 3. Compare youraction with the values you feel you have. Are your values consistent with your actions.
- 19. 4. Reward yourselfafter you complete a task.
- 20. 5. Motivate yourself.Dwell on success, not failure. Break large assignments into small tasks. Keep a reminder schedule and checklist.
- 21. 6. Set realisticgoals.
- 22. 7. Modify yourenvironment. Eliminate or minimize noise/distraction. Ensure adequate lighting. Don’t waste time going back and forth to get things, have necessary equipment at hand. Don’t get too comfortable, a desk and straight-backed chair is usually best. Be neat! Take a few minutes to straighten you desk, this can help to reduce daydreaming.