Procrastination means putting off things to do that may be important and urgent until tomorrow, whether they are household chores, administrative tasks, shopping, medical or other appointments, etc., and finding good excuses for doing so. If each of us can find ourselves in this situation one day or another on an ad hoc basis because it is a completely human reaction when certain tasks bother us, procrastinators cannot act otherwise because it is in fact a behavioral disorder, for the most serious cases, which affects in particular people who have particular characteristics (lack of concentration, self-confidence, relying too much on others, etc.). However, it is possible to stop systematically putting everything off until tomorrow by applying very simple rules.
According to the definition given by the dictionary Le Robert, procrastination designates a “tendency to put off until tomorrow, to adjourn, to temporize”. In other words, procrastinating means systematically postponing planned tasks that are important and necessary, even if this has consequences that can cause problems.
A person who tends to procrastinate acts in this way in order to meet his immediate needs even if those that he procrastinates are more important. This tendency is explained by the fact that what we postpone is generally unpleasant, that these tasks bring no immediate satisfaction in return. While the tasks that we decide to perform instantly bring immediate satisfaction, or reward.
The person who procrastinates (the procrastinator) is in fact, when he is in this situation of procrastination, in front of a complicated conflict to manage:he knows that the tasks which he postpones to the next day are essential whereas he chooses to carry out instead those that please him better and give him satisfaction, even though they are not necessarily a priority.
Procrastination represents a kind of facility in action but which, however, results in a high level of stress, anxiety, even depression, for people who act in this way because they have to act in the moment. urgency to achieve what they have put off until tomorrow. This choice, which in fact reflects a behavioral disorder, is indeed unconsciously constrained. As a result, procrastination causes in these people a decrease in their well-being, dissatisfaction and, ultimately, poor performance in their actions.
It has been shown that procrastination affects more people who are not very active physically but also mentally, more perfectionists than the average person, those who have difficulty concentrating on a task, those who have difficulty integrate into social life, who show pessimism or who do not anticipate the future well. In short, procrastinators are often people who have trouble making decisions, who lack self-confidence, and therefore postpone certain tasks until the next day, or until much later...
Procrastination is not a disease, but a behavioral disorder when it is important. And like all these types of symptoms, it is quite possible to remedy them by adopting simple behaviors. A necessity because procrastination is actually a waste of time (postponing deadlines prevents you from achieving your goals quickly), or it can cause you to miss opportunities.
Then, fighting procrastination requires putting in place a certain discipline. For example, forcing yourself to draw up a list of tasks to do during the day and in the days to come and above all to list those that you systematically postpone.
From this list, rank the things you need to do in order of priority, noting for each of them why they are important or urgent, and the risks you incur if you put them off until the next day.
You can also help yourself not to put things off until the next day by establishing a retroplan for each of your important tasks, i.e. a calendar that lists all the steps to be carried out for a specific task starting from the date at which you must have completed it, and going back in time. Set specific deadlines for each of these steps and above all stick to them.
Stop putting off until tomorrow what you have to do today is not always easy for a procrastinator. But the entourage can play an important role and it is necessary to rely on those close to you in this case.
They can indeed help you remember your good resolutions and the priorities that you have set yourself regarding your tasks that cannot be postponed until tomorrow.
It is not easy to stop procrastinating when you suffer from procrastination. A behavior that can be explained in particular by the fact of wanting to postpone tasks that bring no satisfaction in the end.
So if you have embarked on the process, not always easy, of no longer systematically postponing an action and you achieve your goals, consider rewarding yourself when you have succeeded, especially when it comes to an important task. which does not bring any particular satisfaction!
A good way to regain self-confidence, lack of self-esteem is often the cause of procrastination.
