Procrastination, the thief of time

If you want to make up an easy job seem mighty hard, just keep putting off doing it.
- Olin Miller

Procrastination is the tendency to delay tackling tasks until the last minute. Psychologist Wayne Weiten of Santa Clara University says almost everyone procrastinates on occasions. However, research suggests that about 20 percent of adults are chronic procrastinators. Procrastination is more likely to occur when people have to do unpleasant tasks or when they know that their performance will be evaluated by others. Thus, students preparing for examinations tend to postpone their studies till the last moment.

In psychological terms, procrastination refers to the act of replacing high-priority actions with tasks of lower priority or doing something from which one derives enjoyment and thus putting off important tasks to a later time. In practical terms, if we have to do something pleasant, we will not postpone it.

Writing a love letter or meeting your loved one are things we do, pushing all the other tasks to the backyard. However, when we are compelled to study a difficult subject and sit an examination, we tend to postpone it because we do not derive any immediate pleasure out of it.

According to the celebrated psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, the pleasure principle may be responsible for procrastination. It is well known that human beings do not like negative emotions. They like to put off a stressful task for another day.

Wayne Weiten: Almost everyone procrastinates on occasion

When people follow the pleasure principle, they fail to realise that procrastination is counter-productive. For instance, when you postpone studying a subject, the result may be devastating. Such failures cause stress and a sense of guilt.

Domino effect

Sometimes, procrastination has a domino effect. When we postpone one task, we tend to put off another piece of work to do something pleasurable. Most of us tend to postpone certain tasks occasionally. However, chronic procrastination is a sure sign of an underlying psychological disorder.

There are many psychological causes of procrastination. One major reason is anxiety. Students preparing for examinations postpone their studies through anxiety. Through a low sense of self-worth and self-defeating mentality, they tend to think that they will not be able to pass the examination. Some students also think that passing an examination is not worth the trouble because they will not secure jobs easily. They are under the illusion that examinations are not the best way to gauge their skills.

In a study conducted recently, it was estimated that 80 to 95 percent of college students engage in procrastination. About 75 percent of them consider themselves to be procrastinators. Most college students tend to procrastinate when they have to submit an assignment before a deadline. They find it impossible to complete it on time because they had been postponing the process of gathering material through research.

Examinations

The same situation prevails as regards examinations. When students keep postponing the revision of subjects, they tend to cram at the last moment. According to the ‘Student syndrome’, cramming helps students to apply themselves to a particular subject immediately before the examination. Psychologists say that this leads to stress, lack of sleep and inefficiency.

It is strange but true that procrastinators have their own excuses. Some of the excuses seem to be ridiculous. Some college students avoid going for lectures thinking that they can copy the notes from some other student. There are others who find solace in extracurricular activities such as sports and taking part in a play. Sometimes, students belittle the importance of examinations and assignments, finding a reason for procrastination.

Those who wish to procrastinate compare themselves with others who are like-minded. What is worse is that some procrastinators think that striving for a goal is something funny. They do so solely due to external forces over which they have little control. For instance, some college students become the pawns of scheming politicians. As a result, they postpone studies.

Procrastination has a downside. Procrastinators often underestimate how much time will be required to complete a task effectively. On the other hand, waiting until the last minute may make the task more stressful and formidable. Studies show that when a deadline looms, procrastinators tend to experience elevated anxiety and increased health problems.

Downside

Procrastinators may yield short-term gains such as pleasure and contentment. However, procrastination means long-term costs with impaired performance and increased stress.