We are so overloaded with information today that we sometimes tend to generalize everything we learn. From the foundational book, The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peel, some people have generalized personal development to be “thinking positive all the time.” That simply isn’t true. Similarly, the notion that procrastination is to be avoided at all costs, is another glorified fallacy.
Yes, there are many times when procrastination causes us undue stress, prolongs the inevitable, or negatively affects our productivity. There are also times when procrastinating can be a blessing, a productivity-booster, or even a necessity. Yes, you heard me right. Let me explain - here are three scenarios in which it is good to procrastinate.
1. Being in a bad state.
A bad state is a physical or emotional place where you cannot be very effective. That is, we feel over-stressed, overloaded, or physically exhausted. As an example, if we are in a depressed state about our finances, then the last thing we should do is our taxes. In this state, we would do a horrible job! We would naturally be pessimistic and wouldn’t look for all the possible ways we could save money. We should procrastinate until we are in a better mood and can do a better job. It would be better to do a good job later than a bad job now.
If we’re in a place of completing almost everything on our to-do list or having a pretty empty schedule in the near future, then perhaps we should procrastinate the one or two things that are left. Let’s reward ourselves with procrastination!! You’re probably not in this situation very often, so when you are, feel good about it. Procrastinate now, rather than procrastinating when you have a million things to do. There’s a time and place for everything - and this is a good time for procrastinating.
Why does procrastinating in this situation work? Let’s suppose we complete everything. Now, we feel accomplished for a moment. Then, all of a sudden, our subconscious mind asks “what’s next?” We may then feel unproductive, unnecessarily question our overall direction, or nit-pick at things that have already been done. Instead, if we procrastinate the tasks at hand until we have at least several things to do, then we’ll naturally be more excited, eager, and consequently, effective in completing the tasks.
3. Delegation ability.
Ever wonder how sometimes we procrastinate, and then find that the job got done by someone else, or that it didn’t need to be done at all? That’s because our subconscious knows the universe better than our conscious mind does! The trick is, when to trust our subconscious, and when not to fall pray to its tricks. We naturally want to procrastinate things that we don’t really like doing. So, the question to ask is, “can this task be delegated to someone else?” If so, delegate it! We should strive to do the things we love to do, and not fall into guilt tactics about procrastinating. The procrastination is a sign - and we must learn to use such signs to take appropriate actions. Another question to ask in this scenario is, “What will happen if this task never gets done?” Sometimes, we think we’re procrastinating, when in fact we’re waiting to get more information to make a decision on whether something should be done or not.
There are probably other scenarios in which procrastinating makes sense. The world isn’t black-and-white, and when we live life as if it was black-and white, we find ourselves feeling guilty, unhappy, and unfulfilled. There is a time and place for procrastination. Don’t live by other people’s generalizations. Discover what strategies work for you - and live by your strategies.
Let's love the world together...
Love,
[)anish /|hmed, blind visionary
I find that sometimes I become super productive when I'm procrastinating. I do all the things that I've been putting off while I avoid the one thing that I should be doing :)
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