“Don’t Wait to Succeed: The Consequences of Procrastination and How to Avoid Them”
What if the upcoming week is your last week on this planet? Would you still put off something? Voluntarily No. You will work more enthusiastically than ever before, and you want to experience everything the world has to offer, from getting up early to exercising in a way you’ve never done before. So why do we frequently put off doing our tasks in our everyday schedules? Let’s hop onto the definition of procrastination in general.
Think of the last time when you were assigned a project in school or at the workplace, what was your first question? when is the deadline isn’t it. “Ahh I will do this one day prior to the submission”, is an expected answer. Here is when the word procrastination comes to use.
Procrastination is none other than delaying the work till the last moment or something that forces you to postpone things. It is simply a result of your lack of drive or general sluggishness to complete the task at hand. Well, procrastination is detrimental in many ways.
Considering physical health, According to doctors, over 45% of the world’s population is unfit because they continually find reasons not to exercise due to procrastination, which also makes them lethargic. They have trouble carrying out their activities of daily living as they get older.
Speaking about mental health, persistent procrastinators typically have low self-esteem and self-confidence. This is result of putting off tasks that occasionally can’t finish and end up being frustrated.
CAUSES OF PROCRASTINATION
It is not always that you are running away from your tasks but sometimes it can be a disorder as well. Here are some that you need to check out why you are postponing things.
PRESENT BIAS
Human behavior is highly characterized by the present bias phenomenon. For instance, people are more allured by the idea of losing weight in a month rather than working out for six months and then shedding their body fat. People get extremely motivated when they are receiving instant rewards rather than having long-term commitments. Since they are intrinsically motivated, they will put forth all of their effort to do the task at hand and get the reward.
OCD
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD): People with OCD are unable to complete their tasks because they are afraid of making mistakes. These patients typically perform a single job repeatedly to make sure that everything is set up properly. They eventually ran out of time for the other one after spending so much time on such things.
AHDH
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (AHDH) patients frequently struggle to focus on their work. They frequently become preoccupied with trivial diversions or other people’s behavior. Patients of ADHD are sloppy and make more errors. They are unable to complete any assignment completely, thus they end up compiling the majority of them.
Scientifically, studies reveal that 80% of adults globally are chronic procrastinators. This is because they are deprived of skills such as time management and self-regulation. Most people lack the necessary mindset to undertake a task, and they frequently exhibit laziness while working.
However, they are charged for non-productive things such as watching television. They tend to invest their precious time in tasks that are not prioritized as compared to important ones. They fail to have commitments because of their laziness.
EFFECTS OF PROCRASTINATION
There are ample effects of procrastination. In academics, students keep on procrastinating their studies and projects till the deadline. Students do not study their entire session and in the end, they mug up the syllabus just in a day before their exams which gets erased in the examination hall and they end up getting bad grades at school.
At the workplace, employees do not prepare their projects beforehand and at the time of presentation, they mess up things and are often seen as irresponsible and less dedicated towards their job.
Furthermore, people who are unable to complete their tasks in time, develop a feeling of self-doubt. They usually think that they are incapable of doing a small thing and slowly become less confident in themselves.
PROCRASTINATORS VS. NON-PROCRASTINATORS
Procrastinators experience significantly higher levels of stress. People who don’t put off their work finish their tasks just in time, which prevents them from making any necessary revisions. On the other hand, those who don’t procrastinate are more effective since they have more time to make improvements and are therefore better at what they do. They operate without stress and frequently prevent final messes.
Since they plan their time and lives and are long-sighted, they are well-organized and more successful than procrastinators. People who procrastinate frequently might expect to lose out on significant opportunities in life, such as promotions and appraisals
TIPS TO AVOID PROCRASTINATION
Stop being a couch potato and let’s get to work with some proven tips to circumvent procrastination;
1. Make a TO-DO list: The first task that you take up in the morning should be to make a to-do list. The list should have the things to be done in a day, ranked from most important to least. This will help you to stick to your work and be more productive.
2. Take baby steps: For an obese person, taking small steps like going for a ten-minute walk or eating healthfully six days a week sounds very straightforward and doable compared to tackling a major objective like getting in shape.
3. Eliminate distractions: Next time you enter your study room make sure you leave all your distractive objects as well as your thoughts at the doorstep. This will help you to concentrate effectively. Recognize your warning signs which hinder your concentration and knock them out.
4. Reward yourself: Pat your back whenever you did something productive. Reward yourself with small gifts such as candy or a bar of chocolate. This will help to incline motivation within yourself.
5. Yoga or meditative exercises: This may sound lil bit out of the blue but practicing yoga can help to relax the body as well as the mind. Your memory becomes sharper, making it easier to remember more. These will also increase self-confidence and mitigate stress from your body.
Last but not least, “Everybody procrastinates but not everyone is a procrastinator” and you have the potential to crack everything and anything just get out of your comfort zone.
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