WEBVTT - Why we procrastinate 0:00:03.120 --> 0:00:06.320 Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio. 0:00:08.400 --> 0:00:12.959 Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. 0:00:13.640 --> 0:00:16.319 For the next five episodes, I'll be talking about the 0:00:16.360 --> 0:00:21.520 topic of procrastination. Today, we're talking about what procrastination is 0:00:21.960 --> 0:00:25.319 and why we put things off. Over the next few days, 0:00:25.400 --> 0:00:28.360 we'll look at strategies for making progress even if we 0:00:28.400 --> 0:00:32.400 do feel resistance. Finally, we'll talk about when that resistance 0:00:32.479 --> 0:00:36.320 is a good thing, because procrastination is actually our intuition's 0:00:36.360 --> 0:00:41.080 way of teaching us something important. But first, a definition, 0:00:42.240 --> 0:00:46.320 procrastination means putting something off, even knowing will be worse 0:00:46.440 --> 0:00:50.720 off because of the delay. Sometimes delays don't matter or 0:00:50.760 --> 0:00:54.360 are even wise. If you put off checking email because 0:00:54.400 --> 0:00:56.600 you need to help a colleague who's really struggling with 0:00:56.640 --> 0:01:00.680 a project, you are choosing well. If put off writing 0:01:00.680 --> 0:01:03.120 a self evaluation that will help your manager argue for 0:01:03.160 --> 0:01:07.360 your promotion, that's procrastination. The first thing to know is 0:01:07.400 --> 0:01:11.720 that everyone procrastinates to some degree. In the past few weeks, 0:01:11.720 --> 0:01:13.720 I've put off a number of things that I definitely 0:01:13.720 --> 0:01:16.480 had time to do but chose not to, such as 0:01:16.520 --> 0:01:19.480 getting my car's oil changed and making an update that 0:01:19.520 --> 0:01:21.600 my marketing person keeps telling me to do with my 0:01:21.680 --> 0:01:25.600 Instagram account. People are most likely to procrastinate things that 0:01:25.640 --> 0:01:29.520 seem complicated or unpleasant, and I know this is true 0:01:29.520 --> 0:01:32.920 for me too. If something doesn't have a definite deadline, 0:01:33.319 --> 0:01:36.280 then it's particularly easy to put off to tomorrow what 0:01:36.400 --> 0:01:40.880 could be done today. People sometimes ask me if procrastination 0:01:40.920 --> 0:01:44.360 means they're lazy. I guess it could. But in a 0:01:44.440 --> 0:01:47.600 recent article for The New York Times, writer Charlotte Lieberman 0:01:47.680 --> 0:01:52.400 explored a different angle. Sometimes, she wrote, procrastination is about 0:01:52.440 --> 0:01:59.040 self doubt, low self esteem, anxiety, or insecurity. Staring at 0:01:59.040 --> 0:02:02.080 a blank document might be thinking, I'm not smart enough 0:02:02.120 --> 0:02:04.920 to write this. Even if I am, what will people 0:02:04.920 --> 0:02:08.240 think of it? Writing is so hard? What if I 0:02:08.280 --> 0:02:11.160 do a bad job. All of this can lead us 0:02:11.200 --> 0:02:14.000 to think that putting the document aside and cleaning that 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:18.520 spice straw instead is a pretty good idea. I think 0:02:18.639 --> 0:02:22.680 Charlotte is onto something. There's some research finding that procrastination 0:02:22.760 --> 0:02:27.240 is about protecting our egos from the bruising nature of reality. 0:02:27.720 --> 0:02:29.920 One study found that when students were told that a 0:02:30.000 --> 0:02:32.919 test was an important judge of their abilities, they put 0:02:32.960 --> 0:02:35.880 off studying. When these students were told that the test 0:02:35.919 --> 0:02:40.120 didn't matter, well, then they felt no such procrastination urge. 0:02:40.680 --> 0:02:43.000 What's happening is that it's really scary to think that 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:46.440 we might try our hardest, throwing our hearts into things, 0:02:46.520 --> 0:02:50.360 and still fail. So sometimes we try to protect ourselves 0:02:50.400 --> 0:02:53.560 by putting things off. If you put off studying until 0:02:53.600 --> 0:02:56.080 an hour before the test, well, of course you won't 0:02:56.080 --> 0:02:59.920 do well. That kind of failure feels more psychologically acceptable, 0:03:00.960 --> 0:03:03.120 but it's kind of a sad way to go through life. 0:03:03.880 --> 0:03:07.040 Developing the courage to risk failure is far more rewarding. 0:03:07.720 --> 0:03:10.720 We get better at things by doing our best, seeing 0:03:10.720 --> 0:03:14.480 where we come up short, and trying again. It also 0:03:14.520 --> 0:03:17.079 helps to realize that failure is generally not that big 0:03:17.120 --> 0:03:20.040 a deal. I like to think of the word failure 0:03:20.120 --> 0:03:24.120 in the context of weight training. Weightlifters will sometimes do 0:03:24.200 --> 0:03:26.800 reps to the point of muscle failure, and that's the 0:03:26.840 --> 0:03:31.480 word they use, failure. It's not a judgment. You're not 0:03:31.560 --> 0:03:34.399 a bad person because you can't lift those weights indefinitely. 0:03:35.040 --> 0:03:38.520 It's just a reality that we have limits. Weightlifters view 0:03:38.600 --> 0:03:42.120 failure as part of the process. You go to your limit, 0:03:42.680 --> 0:03:46.600 then rest a bit, then try again. And over time 0:03:47.160 --> 0:03:52.920 that limit moves. In Charlotte Lieberman's article, she recommended countering 0:03:52.920 --> 0:03:57.360 the procrastination cycle with self compassion. One study found that 0:03:57.400 --> 0:04:00.760 students who could forgive themselves for procrastinating on a test 0:04:01.280 --> 0:04:04.880 or less likely to procrastinate on a future one. So 0:04:04.880 --> 0:04:08.080 when you find yourself putting something off, rather than getting 0:04:08.080 --> 0:04:12.560 into a cycle of self loathing, simply say it's okay. 0:04:13.080 --> 0:04:16.960 Treat yourself just like you treat a friend. If she 0:04:17.080 --> 0:04:19.200 put off applying for a new job, you wouldn't tell 0:04:19.200 --> 0:04:22.440 her she's a miserable excuse for a human being. You'd 0:04:22.560 --> 0:04:25.680 encourage her and point out that this application is just 0:04:25.720 --> 0:04:29.520 a small thing standing between her and a great future. 0:04:30.400 --> 0:04:35.520 She's totally got this and you do too. So think 0:04:35.560 --> 0:04:38.599 about something big that you've been putting off. Would it 0:04:38.680 --> 0:04:42.120 change anything to recognize that failure isn't that big a deal? 0:04:43.040 --> 0:04:45.440 Would it change anything to tell yourself that you're still 0:04:45.440 --> 0:04:47.240 a great person whether you do this thing or not. 0:04:47.680 --> 0:04:50.080 But if you choose to do it, it might be awesome. 0:04:50.880 --> 0:04:56.039 I don't know, maybe not, but it might. Please. Tune 0:04:56.040 --> 0:04:57.640 in for the rest of the week for more on 0:04:57.760 --> 0:05:01.239 procrastination and ways we can get going on the things 0:05:01.320 --> 0:05:04.880 that matter to us in the meantime. This is Laura. 0:05:05.480 --> 0:05:08.120 Thanks for listening and here's to making the most of 0:05:08.120 --> 0:05:19.360 our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear from you. 0:05:19.360 --> 0:05:22.239 You can send me your tips, your questions, or anything else. 0:05:23.000 --> 0:05:26.560 Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at 0:05:26.600 --> 0:05:32.120 Before Breakfast pod that's B the number four, then Breakfast 0:05:32.480 --> 0:05:35.279 p o D. You can also shoot me an email 0:05:35.320 --> 0:05:39.159 at Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart media dot com 0:05:39.200 --> 0:05:41.720 that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters. 0:05:42.320 --> 0:05:44.400 Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch. 0:05:50.240 --> 0:05:53.320 Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio. For 0:05:53.440 --> 0:05:56.479 more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the I heart 0:05:56.520 --> 0:05:59.839 Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 0:05:59.839 --> 0:06:00.599 favorite shows.