I’ve been bragging to people for years about how lucky I am not to have an addictive personality. But isn’t denial one of the primary characteristics of an addict? Sure, I’ve never been an alcoholic or a compulsive gambler, but when I take stock of the habitual behaviors I do engage in, I realize I’ve been lying to myself all along. The difference between stereotypical addicts and me is that while they’re hooked on risky activities or toxic substances, I can’t resist not doing anything—I’m a certified, class-A procrastinator. If it can be done today, I’ll do it tomorrow (or never). If I have a far-off deadline to meet, I’ll still end up butting right up against it (or miss it altogether). I’m nothing if not consistent in my tendency to make things as stressful as possible for myself by shirking responsibility until the last possible moment, then cramming four days’ worth of work into six hours and nearly collapsing in the process.
My ultimate opportunity to test my keen time-wasting abilities came when I was self-employed for three years. So many temptations, so little time. Go surfing or edit bank documents? The frigid ocean water would surely make me more alert when I returned to my desk. Waste time looking at celebrity-gossip Web sites or get a head start on that big book project? Duh—Hollywood’s survival depended on me. Go grocery shopping or … you get the point.
My poor decisions resulted in countless late nights and weekends of work. As my nine-to-five friends enjoyed their Saturdays, I’d be MIA, burning the midnight oil and fretting about getting in under the wire with a project I could’ve finished days earlier if only I’d had some self-discipline. Now that I have a full-time job again, I’m relieved to be able to put those days behind me—but my memories of them are vivid enough to constantly remind me to get my work done on time, every time. After all, procrastination may seem like an inescapable, universal affliction, but it doesn’t have to be.
I’m Late! I’m Late! For a Very Important Date!
Writer Hara Estroff Marano interviewed two leading experts on procrastination for a 2003 Psychology Today article: Joseph Ferrari, associate professor of psychology at De Paul University in Chicago, and Timothy Pychyl, associate professor of psychology at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. Their comments cast chronic procrastinators in a grave light—as ill-adapted self-saboteurs who undermine the severity of their condition. Furthermore, these psychologists believe that chronic procrastinators share a number of behavioral traits that perpetuate their bad habits.
- Procrastinators are masters of self-deception who tell themselves the same lies so frequently that they begin to believe them. Common justifications for procrastination include lines like “I work best under pressure” and “I’m most creative when I’m on a tight deadline.” As Ferrari and Pychyl point out, however, creativity and efficiency can’t be channeled or predicted so readily; rather, these statements are just defense mechanisms.
