Topics Covered: What is Procrastination & how to overcome it?

You are sitting with all your books, notes, and highlighters, ready to achieve your targets for the day. 

With elaborate plans and defined tasks, you are determined.

But soon enough, your mind has drifted somewhere else. 

Within minutes, you have scrolled through Instagram reels, watched a few YouTube shorts and made plans on how you’ll spend time with friends in the evening.

Does this pattern sound familiar? 

You need not worry, as this happens to the best of us, and you are not alone.

This is how procrastination works!

Procrastination is the act of voluntarily delaying or postponing a task despite knowing its importance. 

Procrastination is the act of voluntarily delaying or postponing a task

You may even procrastinate reading this article. But I suggest you stay a while longer and read what I am about to share.

By the end you’ll understand procrastination a lot better. 

And who knows, you may also learn a few techniques to overcome it. 

Let’s get going and address one common confusion first.

Is Procrastination the same as Laziness?

We often confuse procrastination with laziness.

Are they the same? Let’s get a little clarity on this.

In procrastination,

  • the task at hand is avoided and short-term comfort is chosen over long-term goals. For example, drifting towards social media or gaming apps instead of finishing a mock test is a wonderfully appealing short term comfort, which in turn affects your long-term goal of doing well in the exam. 
  • the willingness to do a task is present, but the underlying fears, feelings of overwhelm, and emotional barriers take over a person’s will to start the task.

A lazy person, on the other hand,

  • lacks the general willingness to do any task.
  • do not feel the need to do the task, 
  • is not stressed about not completing it on time, however important the task may be.
  • has no sense of urgency, even when deadlines are involved.

In both cases, the problem lies with the motivation of the person doing the task. 

The difference, however, is in the intent. 

The difference between Procrastination and Laziness lies in Intent

A procrastinator intends to do the task in the best possible manner. He is well aware of the priority and importance of the task, no matter how much he might delay it. 

On the other hand, a lazy person simply does not want to put in the effort.

Let’s understand this using an example: 

Why do you always keep putting off reading a particular chapter, that dreaded subject or taking mock tests? 

You need to ask yourself, are you really lazy or are there other emotional blocks behind this? 

The answer lies within you. 

And you’ll get closer to that answer as we move ahead with this article.

Now, we know that a procrastinator is not necessarily lazy. 

They delay tasks for reasons that can be psychological and emotional. 

Let’s delve deeper into the reasons behind why a person procrastinates.

Why do we Procrastinate? 

Procrastination is not solely a motivation issue or a time management problem. 

It has various underlying factors involved. These can be:

Procrastination is not just about motivation or time management

1. Fear 

It can be the fear of failure, or not doing well enough. 

Imagine the high expectations you had from yourself when you started.

The promises you made. To yourself and everyone around you. 

You force yourself into believing that failing is not an option.

And then comes that thought-  “But, what if I fail?”

What follows is a truck load of fear.

Similarly, there is the fear of being judged, looked down upon, or considered a fool. 

“3 years into the preparation and still couldn’t crack a single exam or get any job” society judges unforgivingly.

Judgements like these fill you with overwhelming feelings.

Just like the dreadful feeling of people laughing at you or considering you a fool.

All this fear can be paralyzing.

And gets nothing done.

2. Perfectionism 

Some of us wait for the perfect time, or situation to work. 

Which leads to unnecessary delays and last-minute panic. 

“My first attempt will be the best, and it will be my last.”

To justify this statement, you keep extending the date of your first attempt.

Reason being, you never feel completely ready to give it your best shot.

Honestly, there are no ‘perfect’ scenarios in life. 

The key is to work and create the best out of the present scenario, however good or bad it may be.

3. Feeling Overwhelmed

With big tasks to complete, even the basic decision of where to begin becomes difficult. 

“How am I supposed to read this entire book in two months and retain everything?”

“Are we really supposed to cover current affairs from the past 6 months?”

The work-load ahead feels like an insurmountable mountain, and hence overwhelm sets in. 

This leads you to putting the entire task aside. And you don’t even begin.

4. Lack of Motivation

Not everyone is motivated every day to do even the basic jobs.

Let’s suppose you have appeared in various competitive exams. 

But have seen no luck. And failed multiple times.

It is very easy for you to wait till motivation strikes so that you can start studying again. 

Then, there are also a few subjects you detest or simply find boring.

What you will require is double the amount of will and motivation to take up these subjects or start studying.  

The result is further delays and added pressure. 

5. Self-doubt 

You may have high expectations from yourself.

As a result, you have set eyes on big goals.

But as soon as you look at the goal, a little voice inside starts throwing doubts at you.

“I don’t think that’s possible.”

“How can you do that? This exam is way out of your league” 

“Have you ever cleared a competitive exam earlier? You could barely pass your college exams”

“Whom are you kidding here? Set realistic goals.” 

And then with so many questions, you spiral down into a well of self-doubt.

People who lack self-confidence and constantly doubt their abilities tend to procrastinate more. 

The persistent doubt drives one away from tasks or responsibilities and solidifies avoidance behaviour.

Self-doubt and low self-confidence leads to more procrastination.

6. Last-minute hustle

For some people, postponing tasks helps them work better.

They argue that the feeling of being under pressure or having a time crunch makes them more productive.

A lot of students make it a habit to study on the last day, week or month, although this does not work for everyone. 

This can be true only if they are not wasting the remaining time worrying about the pending job.

So it is suggested not to copy the strategies of toppers. 

It may or may not work for you. 

Know what they did, learn from them, but devise your own strategy.

Understand that procrastination is not the starting point but an end result

There may be various unresolved issues and emotions that lead to procrastination. 

Procrastination is not the starting point but an end result.

But all this does not stop with procrastination. 

Stretching tasks till the last minute will just add to a host of other problems.

These can be panic, stress, anxiety, fear and other issues.

Aren’t these the ones which started this whole loop in the first place?

Therefore, it becomes essential to understand the emotion behind the delay. 

Is the delay helping you, or are you trying to avoid certain negative emotions?

Firstly, acknowledge the problem and understand the reasons behind it. 

Then, effectively overcome procrastination using the tips and techniques I’ve shared below.

Ways to overcome procrastination

1. Know the Reason

  • Overcoming procrastination becomes easier if you know and can clearly define the reason behind it.
  • It may be a problem of emotional regulation, but the reason and pattern may vary for different people.
  • The next step is to acknowledge and accept what you are doing. Without acceptance and action, there can be no change. 
  • For example: you may be delaying studying Quantitative Aptitude because you failed in one of your exams as you attempted a few QA questions incorrectly. 
  • So, for you, it may be your fear of failure stopping you. But for someone else, it can be the sheer magnitude of the syllabus which is causing a sense of overwhelm and preventing them from starting. 

2. Break bigger tasks

  • Procrastination is very often linked to feeling overwhelmed. And what makes you feel overwhelmed? Sometimes it is the hard tasks or the big and lengthy ones.
  • One way of subsiding this overwhelm is to try and break down these otherwise monstrous tasks that look unachievable, into bite-sized achievable goals.
  • Breaking down tasks removes the unnecessary pressure we put on ourselves until we start or complete a task.
  • Completing small tasks every day gives a sense of achievement. It also changes the perception of that tedious task into something doable and under our control.

3. Consistent Progress over Perfectionism

  • Thinking that you can finish any big task in one go and that too flawlessly only gives you anxiety and false hopes. Having high expectations from yourself may be good, but it should not put you into inaction. 
  • Consistent steps (however small they may be), and daily progress will give you more results than waiting to do something perfectly.
  • Many students keep delaying their attempts because they are waiting for the day they will be fully prepared, perfectly ready. Sorry to burst your bubble, but that day will never come.

4. Use Techniques

Pomodoro technique

Pomodoro technique is where:

  • you dedicate yourself to studying or working on the task at hand by setting a timer for 25 minutes. 
  • Then, take a break for 5 minutes. 
  • And then you repeat the process.

This technique is quite successful in increasing focus and productivity. It is particularly helpful for students in making long study sessions more productive.

The ‘2-minute rule’ by David Allen

In his book ‘Getting Things Done’, Allen talks about this productivity hack called the ‘2-minute rule’. 

This rule asks you to do the task immediately if it will take two minutes or less. 

If you don’t feel like studying an entire chapter, ask yourself what you can do in two minutes. 

It can be practicing 1 or 2 questions, or revising a concept you learned yesterday.

 This simple practice sets momentum and is a powerful tool to conquer procrastination.

Do the task immediately if it will take two minutes or less.

‘Eat that Frog’ 

Author Brian Tracy gives this productivity tool.

By ‘Eat the Frog’, he means doing the most difficult or dreadful task first thing in the morning.

This gives a motivation boost and will also keep you charged for the entire day.

5. Set deadlines

  • If you do not give yourself a deadline, completing the most simple tasks will take forever.
  • Set daily, achievable deadlines and hold yourself accountable. 
  • Slowly, this will help you make plans that work. 
  • The self-doubt will start to subside, and you’ll become more self-reliant.

Setting small, achievable goals is better than aiming for big unrealistic ones.

6. Create a distraction-free environment

  • We live in a world filled with distractions. Things like mobile phones and social media are our constant companions.
  • It is very tempting to let go of the important task at hand and indulge.
  • The idea is to make the space where you study or work entirely distraction and clutter-free. 
  • Do it, even if you have to disable the wifi, turn off your mobile for a few hours. 
  • If you dedicate time to the dreaded task, you will no longer feel overwhelmed looking at it.

7. Reward Yourself 

  • Give yourself rewards after completing even a small task in time. 
  • This will give you a sense of satisfaction and boost your confidence.
  • Give yourself a treat (this could be anything, a chocolate, an evening with friends or a movie, you decide) every time you hit a milestone.
  • And, eventually, you will start looking forward to studying everyday and not detest it.

Procrastination is our coping mechanism against certain emotions.

What will help further is improving your ‘Self Talk’. 

How we talk to ourselves can make and break our confidence. Work on that self-talk and self-image. 

It can be a total game changer. 

I’ll talk more about this idea soon. 

Now, I would like to end this article by sharing a quote by James Clear in his book ‘Atomic Habits’ 

“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” 

You may accomplish a few goals every now and then, but your actual success will depend on how strong your systems are.

Your actual success will depend on how strong your systems are.

You can act small but plan big. 

To taste success in its true sense, you need to build robust systems and that doesn’t happen in a day. 

Rather, it happens bit by bit, every day. 

It’s the tiny habits that bring massive transformations. 

Now is your time to start. 

Just remember, you have to start today! 

I would love to hear how you deal with procrastination and whether you have used any of these techniques yourself. 

Do share your experiences in the comments below. 

Also let me know if you think I missed anything.