Staring blankly in the middle of the work. Feeling demotivated to finish a task. Running out of ideas to write on the paper. Postponing to do something because you’re not inspired to continue. These are the feelings that we usually have when we experience procrastination. However, what is procrastination? How do we deal with that? Is it just another word for laziness or is there something to worry about it?
In today’s article, we will discuss:
- procrastination: the meaning behind the word
-the causes of procrastination
-the ways to avoid procrastination
-the role of Flexispot’s desk bike in helping a worker avoid procrastination
What is Procrastination?
The act of: putting off, delaying, deferring an action to a later time. It can be habitual or intentional because some people do it even when they know that they have to submit a project on time. It has negative impacts on someone’s productivity such as:
the loss of credibility of a worker who does the procrastination at work
the counter productivity of a procrastinator at work
the inability to create sufficient and effective outcome
the possible effect of a worker’s procrastination to the output of a team
- a. the loss of credibility of a worker who does the procrastination at work
a worker who procrastinate tends to create a negative impression at work. Projects
would not be easily entrusted to this kind of worker of he would habitually do the delays at work especially when finishing a certain task.
- the counter productivity of a procrastinator.
Due to the lack of efficient time to make an output, a person who does procrastination has the bigger chance to be counter- productive which means the output that he might be making might be either half-baked or needs to a lot of polishing
- c. the inability to create sufficient and effective outcome
At times, a procrastinator delays an output that needs to be made with thorough checking or research. This kind of behavior affects the quality of the output because once a procrastinator defers an action, he tends to lack time for sufficient research and polishing his work which leads to making an outcome that is not effective or above satisfactory.
- d. the possible effect of a worker’s procrastination to the output of a team
Most of the time, a procrastinator’s behavior can affect other people. Imagine a team player who delays a certain task which is part of the whole team’s output. What usually happens is the team’s creativity and drive to accomplish a task on time is hampered, putting a certain task in jeopardy.
Looking at these examples, this might make us think why procrastinators do such a behavior. Some psychologists suggest that it is because procrastination is a kind of coping mechanism to most procrastinators especially at the start of doing a task, when anxiety most likely be triggering and stressors associated with deadlines tend to be hurdles at first.
Sadly, what most procrastinators do is what we call negative coping responses which are avoidant and emotional in nature. According to the research, these responses are done to avoid the stress associated with delaying intended and personal goals. In actuality, procrastinators do certain coping responses of which are:
Avoidance: avoiding a place where a task will be done
Denial and Trivilization: a scapegoat for most procrastinators in which they say that a task being avoided and could be delayed because it is less important
Distraction: doing things not relevant to the task in order to suppress the feeling of being pressured
Descending counter factuality: when they compare their procrastination to others’ as worse than theirs
Blaming: This is when a procrastinator claims that there are external factors to their procrastination and these are beyond their control
Mocking: when a procrastinator makes a joke out of one’s procrastination
Ways to Avoid Procrastination:
Be aware of the things which lead to procrastination
In order to help himself, a procrastinator should be able to identify the things that make him
delay his work. He must open-mindedly admit that he procrastinates because once he becomes denial of it, there might be problems in finding the solution to his behavior.
Seeking help from Others
Once the procrastinator learns to admit his shortcoming, he will be able to ask help from other people in addressing his fear, anxiety, and triggers that hamper his ability to finish a certain task
Fair Evaluation of goals, strengths, weaknesses, and priorities
A procrastinator will be able to overcome the difficulties of finishing a task on time if there are peers or colleagues who would help him sort things out without making him feel inferior of himself but would be encouraged to persevere and attain goals.
Setting realistic and attainable goals, day by day:
Little by little, the procrastinator would be able to set his targets in a realistic manner. Giving him tasks that would make him perform well in the group may help him set his goals and attain them accordingly
Modifying one’s environment
From setting realistic plans and goals, a procrastinator might be able to clear his way by being in a place with less distraction.
Making oneself physically and mentally active
Sluggishness and demotivation are some of the traits of a procrastinator. Once, a person overcomes these, it’s better that he would be able to sustain the improvement by making himself always:
Physically Active
Exercising, lifting weights, moving heavy furniture in the house, and even being
on bike wheels such as the Sit2Go 2-in-1 Fitness Chair which has breathable mesh
backrest and supportive soft cushion which would not make him strain the buttocks
area and hips while he continues riding the desk bike.
Mentally Focused:
Once a person starts using desk bikes, his blood circulation will be impressively
Increasing because this may give signals and more oxygen to the brain causing a more
powerful brain activity.
Final Thoughts:
Most of the time, we misinterpret people probably because we don’t always fall into the same spectrum or simply put we don’t have the same goals and ways to cope up with stress but with an open communication, we would be able to understand and help people like the procrastinators overcome their weaknesses. Align them in the same direction with encouragement in order for them to realize their truest potential.
