“Procrastination is the bad habit of putting of until the day after tomorrow what should have been done the day before yesterday.”
– Napoleon Hill
In our lives, there are important tasks we love to push over to the next day because they appear to be boring and mundane. When we keep pushing important tasks to the next day or say to ourselves, “I will do it later” recognize that you have been bitten by the procrastination bug, well not literally.
So what is Procrastination?
Procrastination happens when you do something that is more fun and enjoyable or that you are more comfortable at doing instead of doing important tasks that would ultimately lead you to your goals.
When you procrastinate it signals the failure to focus, and when you fail to focus on activities which would lead you to your goal, you often tend to lose sight of your goal, and thus your goals become a distant dream, buried in the unwanted activities which would leave you unproductive and feeling empty.
How do I recognize when I Procrastinate?
To control procrastination you must begin to recognize when you start to procrastinate and be aware of it.
An example of procrastination could be, say if your goal was to be fit and get in shape, then one of your major activities to reach this goal would be to exercise on a daily basis. Exercising daily could be monotonous and boring although a major requirement in order to reach your goal of being fit and getting in shape, so you may tend to instead watch your favorite program on TV, or catch up with your friends on Facebook as these activities are more fun to do. Soon you would be so caught up in these fun activities that you would forget about your exercise routine.
Does this sound familiar?
Well, Procrastination happens because normally as human beings we tend to choose the easier route if we are provided with two options.
So watching TV or browsing the Internet instead of exercising would be an easy and fun option as it requires less effort and we are comfortable with it. Well, this was just an example.
When we get into the habit of procrastination its effects can be very disastrous. Say if you are a professional and if you procrastinate, delaying critical tasks could have an adverse effect on your career and promotions. If you are a student, procrastination would drastically affect your results and grades. If you feel unwell and sick and procrastinate on meeting a doctor or seeking medical help, the consequences could be life threatening. So you see, everyone seems to be affected by procrastination.
“Procrastination is one of the most common and deadliest of diseases and its toll on success and happiness is heavy. “
– Wayne Gretzky
You must try hard to break the habit of procrastination if you need to move ahead in your life and become successful.
In the next post I will give you some Important Tips and Insights on How to Overcome Procrastination in your life.