Procrastination: Ten Things To Know

I couldn't figure out how to post this to the "Articles" section - I hope it's OK to include here.  I thought the article had some interesting and insightful information, especially about health effects. It is from Psychology Today, 23 August 2003.

There are many ways to avoid success in life, but the most
sure-fire just might be procrastination. Procrastinators sabotage
themselves. They put obstacles in their own path. They actually choose
paths that hurt their performance.

Why would people do that? I talked to two of the world's leading
experts on procrastination: Joseph Ferrari, Ph.D., associate professor of
psychology at De Paul University in Chicago, and Timothy Pychyl, Ph.D.,
associate professor of psychology at Carleton University in Ottawa,
Canada. Neither one is a procrastinator, and both answered my many
questions immediately.

1. Twenty percent of people identify themselves as chronic
   procrastinators. For them procrastination is a lifestyle, albeit a
   maladaptive one. And it cuts across all domains of their life. They don't
   pay bills on time. They miss opportunities for buying tickets to
   concerts. They don't cash gift certificates or checks. They file income
   tax returns late. They leave their Christmas shopping until Christmas
   eve.
2. It's not trivial, although as a culture we don't take it
   seriously as a problem. It represents a profound problem of
   self-regulation. And there may be more of it in the U.S. than in other
   countries because we are so nice; we don't call people on their excuses
   ("my grandmother died last week") even when we don't believe them.
3. Procrastination is not a problem of time management or of
   planning. Procrastinators are not different in their ability to estimate
   time, although they are more optimistic than others. "Telling someone who
   procrastinates to buy a weekly planner is like telling someone with
   chronic depression to just cheer up," insists Dr. Ferrari.
4. Procrastinators are made not born. Procrastination is learned in
   the family milieu, but not directly. It is one response to an
   authoritarian parenting style. Having a harsh, controlling father keeps
   children from developing the ability to regulate themselves, from
   internalizing their own intentions and then learning to act on them.
   Procrastination can even be a form of rebellion, one of the few forms
   available under such circumstances. What's more, under those household
   conditions, procrastinators turn more to friends than to parents for
   support, and their friends may reinforce procrastination because they
   tend to be tolerant of their excuses.
5. Procrastination predicts higher levels of consumption of alcohol
   among those people who drink. Procrastinators drink more than they intend
   to—a manifestation of generalized problems in self-regulation. That is
   over and above the effect of avoidant coping styles that underlie
   procrastination and lead to disengagement via substance abuse.
6. Procrastinators tell lies to themselves. Such as, "I'll feel
   more like doing this tomorrow." Or "I work best under pressure." But in
   fact they do not get the urge the next day or work best under pressure.
   In addition, they protect their sense of self by saying "this isn't
   important." Another big lie procrastinators indulge is that time pressure
   makes them more creative. Unfortunately they do not turn out to be more
   creative; they only feel that way. They squander their resources.
7. Procrastinators actively look for distractions, particularly
   ones that don't take a lot of commitment on their part. Checking e-mail
   is almost perfect for this purpose. They distract themselves as a way of
   regulating their emotions such as fear of failure.
8. There's more than one flavor of procrastination. People
   procrastinate for different reasons. Dr. Ferrari identifies three basic
   types of procrastinators:
   • arousal types, or thrill-seekers, who wait to the last minute for
     the euphoric rush.
   • avoiders, who may be avoiding fear of failure or even fear of
     success, but in either case are very concerned with what others think of
     them; they would rather have others think they lack effort than
     ability.
   • decisional procrastinators, who cannot make a decision. Not
     making a decision absolves procrastinators of responsibility for the
     outcome of events.
9. There are big costs to procrastination. Health is one. Just over
   the course of a single academic term, procrastinating college students
   had such evidence of compromised immune systems as more colds and flu,
   more gastrointestinal problems. And they had insomnia. In addition,
   procrastination has a high cost to others as well as oneself; it shifts
   the burden of responsibilities onto others, who become resentful.
   Procrastination destroys teamwork in the workplace and private
   relationships.
10. Procrastinators can change their behavior—but doing so
    consumes a lot of psychic energy. And it doesn't necessarily mean one
    feels transformed internally. It can be done with highly structured
    cognitive behavioral therapy.