You’ve probably heard the word procrastination, or know it as putting off doing something. Maybe you’re distracting yourself with other tasks, such as scrolling on your phone or watching something on the TV just because it’s on? Ever find yourself with so much to do that you don’t want to do any of it or don’t know where to start?

A lot of the reasoning behind procrastination is self-protection, for one reason or another. As I often say, our brain’s main focus is to keep us alive and safe. Procrastination is one way of us doing that. It’s a coping mechanism.

So if you've been told or you tell yourself you're lazy, you're not.

For some, stalling is because of a fear of failure, perhaps because you've been criticised in past and are now afraid of the potential judgement the task may result in

It can often be a vicious cycle where you become stressed and procrastinate, you then become busy, overwhelmed or burnt out and then become stressed again. Some people however, procrastinate, or put off the task that needs doing to avoid the overwhelm or anxiety they have around doing it. It doesn't result in avoidance, it just puts it off until later.

I've illustrated the circle in a diagram below:

Perhaps you know you're a perfectionist? Perfectionism is another reason people delay doing tasks, if in the past high standards have been expected of you and mistakes were not tolerated, judged or had other negative consequences then it's completely understandable that you would put off doing something for as long as you can

Cognitive overload is another reason, put in English you might better understand, it's the stress of having so much to do, and to think about.  That can be overwhelming and procrastination helps deal with that. Postponing the task can be tied in to the fight/flight response so your body is often affected here as well as your mind and you might experience headaches or muscle tension.

Perhaps you don't think you have the resources to deal with what needs to be done, it's very likely you do, but if it's perceived that way, then stalling is a safer option.

Here's another circle, I won't add another diagram here, my artist skills aren't the best, as you can see. Decision paralysis (you have too many choices) so you become overwhelmed and stressed, the underlying fear is making the wrong decision and so you procrastinate.

Do you recognise yourself in any of these?

I know I have a tendency to over think and make tasks seem a lot larger than they really are and for me, I just have to start. It’s something I recognise and have worked on but being aware that you are procrastinating is a great first step.

The good news is, that if you can break the cycle by address your thoughts and/or the stress, then you can, in time, omit the procrastination stage.

For other ideas to help you address the stress, click here for my previous blog, "From overwhelmed to organised:"

Working through your reasons for procrastination can help enhance your productivity, prevent burnout and reduce stress.

Get in touch, via the contact button at the top of the webpage, if you’d like to discuss counselling sessions with me