A procrastinator is a person who habitually puts things off. While most of us have procrastinated at some point, some chronic procrastinators continually procrastinate over everything. There are also people who cling to procrastination because it feels safe to do so.
Procrastination may not simply be the culprit for not getting things done. There can be underlying compelling reasons why people procrastinate. Procrastination is often driven by negative mind states.
For example, not wanting to do, not wanting to be, or not wanting anything at all. The inability to manage negative emotions enough to complete, or even begin unpleasant tasks drives us to put them off at a later time.
In other words, in the short term, it is more convenient to make excuses than to actually do the thing we don’t like. As a result, procrastination becomes a habit. If you tend to procrastinate, read on to see if you show signs of being a chronic procrastinator.
You Are Consistently Late
One thing that’s common amongst chronic procrastinators is that they are always fashionably late. Whether going to meetings or appointments or beating a deadline, procrastinators always seem to find it a challenge to accomplish things ahead of time, or just in time.
You Are Good at Making a Task List
You could be a diligent to-do list writer. You always have a pen and pad in hand, writing down all the things you need to get done. You always seem to find the time to write down your tasks, but your list gets longer, not shorter, and there are no ‘completed ticks’ next to your tasks.
Being good at making to-do lists can give you the illusion of being super busy, so much so that you then feel like you will never get things done, so you end up becoming overwhelmed and procrastinating a little more.
Plus, you may be overthinking everything. If you spend valuable time doing all sorts of planning and anticipating, there’s a good chance you are losing time for action over excessive thinking. Most people who overthink don’t have the energy left to do the actual work required.
Mulling over something, or planning for a long time, helps you feel you have worked hard. All this planning and writing… phew, you have worked so hard… or have you? Perhaps in truth, you have not accomplished much, or anything at all.
You Never Have Time To Organize or Plan
Alternatively, you may not be very good at making a to-do list at all! Instead, everything you do is due either today or yesterday, flying by the seat of your pants. You have no time to plan or organize things beforehand, or even prepare yourself for any contingencies.
Over planning or under planning are both signs of being a procrastinator. You need to find balance in planning and doing what needs to be done.
You Are Easily Distracted
Do you find yourself repeatedly picking up your mobile phone, and checking out the latest social media posts? Do you find it difficult to resist opening a notification that you know will interest you? Are you easily distracted by external noises and the sounds of people around you? Do you find it hard to focus and get started on doing something? Answering yes to all or most of these questions means that you have mastered the art of delaying tactics and you probably welcome the distractions.
You Are Always Too Busy
No free time within your schedule any time soon? That’s normal, a few times at least, but if you’re someone who doesn’t have time for anything else other than work you needed to finish a while ago, or endless activities you have to do, there’s a very big chance you are making excuses to not do what you really have to do. Perhaps you are losing track of much-needed time to rest and self-care.
Being always too busy for the important things in life is neither cool nor a sign of productivity. Instead, it’s a telltale marker of a procrastinator.
You Feel Overwhelmed
A classic sign of procrastination is consistently feeling overwhelmed. Feeling overwhelmed rarely creates progress, but incites fear and uncertainty. Keep yourself from feeling this way by breaking down big projects into bite-sized tasks you can accomplish every day realistically.
