Why We Procrastinate, and What Actually Helps

You have something important to do. You know it needs doing, you know putting it off will make life harder, and yet you find yourself tidying a drawer, checking your phone or suddenly very interested in the news.

Almost everyone procrastinates sometimes. For some people it becomes a pattern that affects work, studies, health and money. Understanding why it happens is the first step to doing it less.

What procrastination is, and isn’t

Psychologists define procrastination as voluntarily delaying something you intend to do, despite expecting to be worse off for the delay.

That last part matters. Not every delay is procrastination. Waiting for more information, or putting off a low-priority task to do a more important one, can be sensible planning. Procrastination is when the delay works against you, and you know it.

In 2007, psychologist Piers Steel combined the results of hundreds of studies on the subject. He estimated that around 15 to 20% of adults are chronic procrastinators, and that the figure is much higher among students.

It’s about feelings, not time

For a long time, procrastination was treated as a time-management problem. If people just planned better, the thinking went, they would stop putting things off.

Research since then has painted a different picture. Psychologists Fuschia Sirois and Timothy Pychyl describe procrastination as “the priority of short-term mood repair”. When a task makes us feel bad, perhaps because it is boring, confusing or might show us up, avoiding it brings instant relief. The cost comes later, but the brain gives far more weight to how we feel right now.

Avoiding a task brings instant relief. The cost comes later.

That’s why procrastinators aren’t usually lazy. Many work very hard, just on the wrong things.

Why some tasks are harder to start

Some kinds of tasks are especially likely to be put off:

• Boring or unpleasant tasks, such as paperwork or cleaning.
• Vague tasks, such as “sort out my career”, where the first step isn’t clear.
• Tasks with distant rewards. We naturally value rewards now over rewards later, so a deadline weeks away feels less real.
• Tasks tied to self-worth. If doing badly would feel like proof that you’re not good enough, avoiding the task protects you, for now. This is how perfectionism and procrastination often go together.

Steel’s analysis found that procrastination is also strongly linked to being easily distracted and acting on impulse. A phone within reach makes escape very easy.

What actually helps

Since procrastination is mostly about feelings, the most useful strategies make starting feel less unpleasant, or make avoiding harder.

Make an “if–then” plan

Instead of “I’ll work on my essay this week”, decide exactly when and where: “If it’s 9 a.m. on Tuesday, then I’ll sit at my desk and write the introduction.” Psychologists call these implementation intentions. A 2006 review of 94 studies by Peter Gollwitzer and Paschal Sheeran found they had a medium to large effect on whether people actually followed through on their goals.

Shrink the first step

Turn a vague task into a small, concrete action you can start in a few minutes: “open the document and write three bullet points”. The two-minute rule and the Pomodoro Technique both work this way. Once you’ve started, carrying on is usually much easier.

Remove the escape routes

Put your phone in another room, close unnecessary browser tabs, or use an app that blocks distracting sites for a set time. Making distractions slightly harder to reach reduces the pull of the short-term escape. See how habits form for more on how your surroundings shape behaviour.

Notice the feeling

When you feel the urge to switch away, pause and name the feeling: “this is boring”, or “I’m worried this won’t be good enough”. Simply recognising that the urge is about a feeling, not the task itself, can make it easier to carry on for a few more minutes.

Forgive yourself

This one surprises people. In a 2010 study, Michael Wohl and colleagues followed university students through their exams. Students who forgave themselves for procrastinating before the first exam procrastinated less before the next one. Harsh self-criticism adds more bad feelings to the task, which makes avoiding it even more tempting.

When to get more help

Persistent procrastination can sometimes be linked to depression, anxiety or ADHD. If putting things off is seriously affecting your work, studies or wellbeing, and these strategies don’t help, it’s worth talking to a doctor or a counsellor.