If you’re waiting to get something done, you’re probably never going do it.
If you do, it will likely be on a last-minute basis and not up to your usual standards. Even the most skilled worker who procrastinates tends to not show their best work. How could you, when you’re running out of time?
The Internet has made procrastinating somewhat easier though, I will admit. Most of us are a YouTube tutorial away from getting stuff done. Sometimes, we become bombarded with videos, blog links, eBooks and more; now you have too much information — and not enough time to dissect it all!
Human Resource professionals tend to agree that multi-tasking is one of the top five traits one should possess in order to the get past an interview. Go figure! Unless you are blessed with such ability, quit procrastinating. Doing it later, whenever that is, may never happen for you. Meanwhile, here are three things that could take place instead:
- You give the task too much power
Procrastination is simply telling the brain to avoid a task at all costs. Why? Perhaps you’re afraid of it, but why is that? It’s just a thing! And if it needs to get done, get it done already! You’ve got this. Putting it off will only strengthen the pointless power you’ve given it. With time no longer on your side, procrastination will lead to undue stress, like you really need to be stressed out at a time like this!
- There’s the stress
In case you choose to not take my word for it (and although the correlation between stress and procrastination is pretty much a no-brainer), here is proof from the scholarly journal, Psychological Science, that shows the results of a study between those who do it later, and those who do it sooner than later: “Anxiety levels in procrastinators who have delayed studying (for an exam) are extremely high near the exam period…procrastination is linked to negative mental health outcomes” (source: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40063233?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents).
- Bigger and better things…gone!
Do you want to reach a goal? You must do the work, and that includes the completion of the boring, mundane work. The longer you put a task off, the further away you put yourself from achieving dreams! Last-minute action reduces your chances of a re-do (there isn’t time for a re-do in most cases) so there goes your final opportunity of the bigger and better. For those who habitually procrastinate, the bigger and better can take a lifetime to reach! You waste time when you’re wasting time!
Procrastination reveals how we cope when the going gets a bit tough. After spending days or weeks doing nothing, you eventually get the task completed. This means you’ve always had it in you to get it done. So, why not get it done now? Set a deadline, reward yourself upon completion and get it over with already.
Are you a chronic procrastinator? Tell us about it in the comments below.
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