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19 October 2005
Delay procrastinating
Or wait 'til tomorrow
By Terry Riley
When I sat down to write this column on procrastination, my first
inclination was to begin with a few cornball one-liners about how I’d been
avoiding the chore up until the last minute. Well, actually, that’s true,
I did put it off, but I’ll spare you the warmed-over witticisms and get
right to the point: If you are a business traveler who puts off making
travel arrangements or delays making appointments, then you are wasting
time, wasting money and squandering business opportunities. “Moreover,”
says Dr. Gene Griessman, author of Time Tactics of Very Successful
People, “procrastination can increase the stress that already
accompanies business travel.”
So why do you put things off? Maybe it’s because you don’t care if
you get the most convenient flights, or the nicest rooms or the best
meeting times. Or maybe you see making last-minute travel arrangements as
a tactic to score special deals.
Maybe. But not likely. Let’s face it, procrastination generally lies
deeper in most people’s psyches.
Most people put off doing tasks because of anxiety. The anxiety can come
from your own personality or from feelings generated by the task at hand.
It can manifest itself in emotions ranging from defiance (for example, the
executive who feels unfairly pressured by her boss to attend an
out-of-town meeting) to fear -- all kinds of fear: fear of commitment,
fear of failure, even fear of success.
“Adding to this anxiety is the fact that executives often underestimate
the time required to complete certain tasks,” says Dr. Signe Dayhoff,
president of Effectiveness-Plus, a coaching program for people with
anxieties. The result is a buildup of anxiety that leads not just to
procrastination, but to inaction.
At one time or another you probably have been the victim of an anxiety
that has inhibited you from doing what you knew needed to be done. So how
can you shake off fits of temporary paralysis?
First, look around you. We all procrastinate at times. (Heck, if only a
few people were procrastinators, this wouldn't be much of a topic for this
column.) Common problems have common solutions, and there is probably at
least one that will work for you.
Here, then, are five things you can do to get off the dime. Any more than
five and I know you’ll put off reading them.
Simplify. The absolutely most effective strategy is to break up
large, daunting tasks into smaller, doable ones. For instance, instead of
trying to book all flights, all hotels and all rental cars for an extended
multi-city trip, break the chore into smaller tasks, each one of which
should take about 10–15 minutes, 30 minutes tops.
Prioritize. It is amazing how you never quite get to that
distasteful task at the bottom of your “to do” list. So, put it at the top
of your list. Once you get past it, you will feel like a hero, and every
other task will seem more pleasant. Just do it.
Advertise. Telling others of your plan to accomplish your task
introduces an element of social pressure. It’s good motivation, and you
get support and recognition, too.
Be happy with “good enough.” Always trying to get the best possible
deal? Instead, try to get the best possible deal at the moment.
Even if you were to spend months chasing the “best” deal, I can almost
guarantee that another person on your flight, another guest in your hotel
and another driver at the rental car counter is getting a better deal than
you. Conversely, you’re probably getting a better deal than someone else,
too.
Reward. Finally, reward yourself for accomplishing each task—something small: a drink at the water cooler, a quick download of another iTune, a stroll around the block. This is especially important for
procrastinators, who may miss the sweet indolence of the do-nothing life.
In time, however, the reduction in stress and anxiety will be its own
reward.
Speaking of rewards, I’m going to have a beer.
© 2005 Applied Psychology
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