Why we love to procrastinate and how to break the habit

Are we just lazy or is there really a science behind our persistent need to procrastinate? Fortunately, for all procrastinators out there, you are not just lazy, it looks like we were "born this way" (Lady Gaga wasn't kidding).

We were born this way

The limbic system is the part of our brain containing the pleasure center, while the prefrontal cortex is involved in decision making and planning cognitive behavior. Our prefrontal cortex is weaker and not as developed and therefore, many of the times, our limbic system wins out, leading to procrastination.

So... in summary, don't let your limbic system win

We self-handicap

Our love to towards procrastination can come the psychology of self-handicapping - externalize failure by waiting to study the night before, so that if we fail, one can attribute it to the lack of effort rather than a lack of ability. although we're aware that we have an important exam coming, we try to put off studying as much as possible, to convince ourselves that failure came from that lack of effort and not the actual ability to do the exam.

I mean... it works, I can't count how many times I told my parents "I know how to do it, they just didn't give us enough time."

Procrastination is something we love to do, and we will keep doing every time. It's within us to self-sabotage ourself to externalize failures and letting our limbic system win over our prefrontal cortex.

"Procrastination is like a credit card: it's a lot of fun until you get the bill". I get it, procrastination is wonderful, it's the synonym of paradise. But, it's not reality, and is it the enemy of success. procrastination I mean, you may delay that job interview, or that final exam, but time is not going to stop. I am not saying that all of the sudden you start doing your homework 2 weeks in advance, but you have to start somewhere, and you have to start now.

The procrastination-action line

We tend to procrastinate because the rewards of doing that work is in the far future. We have to find a way to move future rewards and consequences into present moment.

This graph is exactly representing what happens the moment you decide to stop procrastinating and begin to take action. For example, you have a paper due in 2 weeks. You've been putting off for the first weeks, and continue to put it off for the second week. You experience some kind of anxiety, but you immediately try to relief yourself by watching Netflix or entertaining yourself with other hobbies. Then, all of the sudden, the day before the essay is due come. Future problems have now become present consequences. Right now you are in the action line. Right as you cross the action line, the pain starts to reduce. The truth about procrastination is that being in the middle of procrastination is more painful that in the middle of doing the essay.

Let me introduce you 4 effective and easy-to-implement solutions to change this habit of ours.

Use "Temptation Bundling"

Temptation Bundling is a concept developed by Katy Milkman, at the University of Pennsylvania. This concept focuses on finding a behavior attractive (doing house chores) by doing one of your favorite thing at the same time (watch Netflix).

You're going to start by creating a two-column list:

1. On the first column, write down your favorites tasks and behaviors that contain pleasure and make you feel satisfied and overall enjoy

2. On the second column, write down the tasks that you should be doing, but put if off for "later"

Some examples to help you create your own temptation bundling:

• Only get a manicure or pedicure while reading overdue emails

• Watch your favorite Netflix show while doing household chores

• Have my morning coffee while I say things I am grateful for

• Listen to your favorite podcasts while working out

Make the tasks more achievable - use the 2-minute rule

The 2-minutes rule is one of my favorito concepts out there. It has helped me at least start doing something I should have done a long time ago, such as exercise at least 3 times a week, do house chores and many other healthy habits that I have been ignoring for long.

I want to make my life as easy as possible, and for that reason I try to look for ways to accomplish this.

Make your habits stick with the 2-minute rule, which states that “When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do.” You will find that almost any habit can be scaled down into a 2-minute version:

• "Do a 30 minutes workout" becomes "Take out my workout mat"

• "Study for class" becomes "take out my notes"

The idea of this rule is to make habits look easy to start. It's easy to think that studying is just taking my notes out, or that doing a 30 minutes workout starts my only taking out my working mat. Once you have started with your habit, it is much easier to continue with it.

Create short term consequences to procrastinating

Create short term consequences that will make feel guilty about procrastination. If you stop working out for 2 days, your body will stay just the same, and no long term consequences will really appear. If you are exercising alone and you skip your workout for a whole week, it won't have a drastic impact on your life. However, if you increase the cost of procrastination on exercise, it will become more painful to stop doing it. If you commit to start going to the gym with your friend at 4 p.m. every Tuesday and Thursday, then the cost of skipping your workout becomes much more painful. You don't want to disappoint your friend.

Use the Ivy-Lee Method and start working NOW

One of the reasons we procrastinate is that we don't have a clear system on what are priorities are. The Ivy-Lee Method is one of the simplest and easiest productivity systems, that help you visualize your tasks and rank them in order of importance

1. Write down 6 (and only 6) tasks the night before

2. Rank them in order of importance (1 being the most important, 6 being the least important)

3. Start your day by completing task nº1 and don't move on to the next task until you have finished nº1

4. Once you have completed task nº1, move on to the next one and follow the same pattern

5. If by the end of the day you haven't been able to finish all 6 of them, move them to the next day along with other tasks

The Ivy-Lee Method works because:

• It gets you started

• Makes the day look easier

• Magic number 6

• Feel satisfied at the end of the day

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If you are procrastinating too much, don't worry, you are definitely not the only one. Here are 4 suggestions I would recommend to try out if you're feeling like doing NOTHING. These solutions are easy and efficient, they won't drastically affect your routine, and most importantly, it will actually help you get started.

Comment down below if you have tried out any of these methods and tell me which one is your favorite

ps: many great things can be done in a day if you don't always make that day tomorrow

XoXo

Sofia's Choice

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References

Clear, J. (2021). Procrastination: A Brief Guide on How to Stop Procrastinating. Retrieved 19 April 2021, from https://jamesclear.com/procrastination

Clear, J. How to Stop Procrastinating by Using the "2-Minute Rule." Retrieved 19 April 2021, from https://jamesclear.com/how-to-stop-procrastinating

Clear, J. The Ivy Lee Method: The Daily Routine for Peak Productivity. Retrieved 19 April 2021, from https://jamesclear.com/ivy-lee

Ducharme, J. (2018). Psychologists Explain Why You Procrastinate — And How to Stop. Retrieved 19 April 2021, from https://time.com/5322514/stop-procrastinating-tips/